


Remember Our Promise

by MiniSuga127



Category: ATEEZ (Band), BLACKPINK (Band), EXO (Band), Stray Kids (Band), TXT (Korea Band), 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Magic, Beomgyu is soft, But it's actually just crack, But it's rly just crack, Coming of Age, Gen, I did this instead of my essay, I rly don't know how to tag, It's gonna sound coherent in the beginning, Kai is adorable, Kinda based off a theory vid I saw, Magic island MV, More tags to be added, Mostly txt, Platonic Relationship, Plz join me on this crackheaded journey, Promises, Run away MV, Soobin-Centric, Taehyun is adorable, X-EXO is the bad guy, Yeonbin is thriving, hella angst, hella crack, hella plot, how do tags work, kind of, magical powers, this is my first fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-04
Updated: 2020-12-05
Packaged: 2021-02-26 04:29:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 23
Words: 72,743
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21667474
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MiniSuga127/pseuds/MiniSuga127
Summary: Five boys make a promise never to forget each otherWhat happens when they break that promise?And how will they deal with the strange occurrences that happen seven years later when they meet again?I'm terrible at summaries.
Comments: 57
Kudos: 79





	1. Prologue: We Were Stars

Prologue: We Were Stars

This is a story of five boys who made a promise. 

A promise to stay together forever, a promise to be there for each other, and most of all, a promise to never forget.

These boys were special. No one would believe it but they were magical. They had tried to explain their uniqueness to others but they simply would not understand.

After all, who would pay attention to the stories of boys who were 10 years and younger?

But these boys were indeed special and whenever they felt overwhelmed with the world, they would always retreat to their special island, the place where they first discovered their magic and each other.

However, these boys would soon be separated from each other. Their school had burned down mysteriously and in order to find a suitable replacement for their children, the families of these boys had to move away from each other.

The boys were devastated upon hearing the news and decided to spend one last night together on their island.

On that fateful day, one of the boys pointed out the single lone star that always shone above their little island.

“Yeonjunnie hyung…” Beomgyu muttered sleepily.

“Yes, beomie?” The 10 year old responded, joining him on the grass near their telescope and throwing an arm around him.

  
“Do stars ever die?” he asked, staring up at the sky where he could just make out the twinkling star.

Yeonjun thought about it for awhile.

“Hmmm I don't really know. Maybe we should ask Tae?” He suggested, rising to his feet.

Taehyun, hearing his name, turned his head towards the two boys, from where he was sitting with Soobin.

“Hm? Ask me what?” He asked, standing up and walking over to them. Soobin put his book down and followed Taehyun.

“Tae, do you know if stars ever die?” Beomgyu asked, looking up at Taehyun.

Taehyun smiled and sat down next to the 2.

“I'll answer that but first where's Kai?” He asked.

“I'll get him.” Soobin replied.

He walked away from the little circle of friends and found Kai sitting in a patch of flowers, staring intently at a dragonfly on the grass, but making no move to touch it.

“Kai...what are you doing?” Soobin asked him. Kai glanced up at him and pointed to the dragonfly, smiling happily.

“Look, it's so pretty.” He said. Soobin grinned back at him.

“Yes it is… Come on, let's go sit with the others, ok?” Soobin said, offering his hand to the 7 year old.

The boy nodded and took his hand and the two of them walked back to the others. Taehyun smiled upon seeing them return.  
  
“Kai, do you know if stars die?” He asked their maknae. The boys eyes widened as he shook his head no.

Taehyun sighed and said, “sadly, they do…”

Yeonjun and Soobin nodded in understanding.

Being the oldest, they realized that everything must die at some point. Watching their own school burn down had solidified that belief. However, they still felt a twinge of sadness, knowing that their star wouldn't last forever.

Beomgyu and Kai's expressions dropped instantly and they were much too shocked to voice their disbelief. Taehyun smiled and continued.

“Everything has to leave from this world, but that doesn't mean they leave from our memories.” He said.

The boys looked at him in confusion.

“What do you mean, hyung?” Kai asked.

“As long as we remember our star, it'll always be alive in our memories. Just because something can die, doesn't mean that it disappears. The star will always be a part of us.” He finished.

The others smiled as they realized the truth in their friends words. They all looked up to the star, then down to their wrists at the matching star bracelets they all owned since the day they befriended each other.

“We won't forget our star, and we won't forget each other.” Yeonjun said, smiling at his younger brothers.

“So our star is different, just like us.” Beomgyu said, smiling.

“The star won't die and neither will our friendship.” Soobin added, playing with his star charm, a small smile on his face.

“Promise?” Kai asked, in a small voice.

His hyungs all smiled and echoed the word back to him.

“Promise.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	2. New Beginnings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 2 here we go...🙂

7 years later...

“Hey, Soobin. Whatcha doing, kiddo?”

Soobin looks up from his book and sees his mother enter the room. She's wearing a bright smile on her face and the excitement is clear in her eyes. He smiles slightly and lifts up the book he was reading.

“Ah, Harry Potter again?” His mom says with a knowing grin, as she sits down on his bed next to him. He nods before putting the book away and glancing back down at his mom.

“My boy has grown so tall.” His mom coos, lovingly. Soobin blushes slightly and thinks for a moment how grateful he is for his mother. How happy he is that she wasn't the one to leave instead of his father. His train of thought breaks as his mom begins to speak again.

“Are you excited for tomorrow?” She asks, her face lighting up. Soobin frowns and shrugs slightly.

“Not really. It's just the first day of school Mom. I do it every year.” He says.

“I know but it's a new school. And besides aren't you at least happy to be back in Seoul after seven long years? You know, the girls told me that their boys are attending the same school as you this year? And the school is built in the same place as the one that burned down. Aren't you excited to see them agai-”

“Mom, listen.” Soobin says, with a sigh. “I know that this all seems very exciting for you, but for me it's different. I know that you only ever talked to their mothers a few times every year, but we never got to stay in touch. And I barely remember anything about myself from when I was 9, so I've essentially forgotten everything about the boys. The only physical things I have left of them are the pictures you always took and that bracelet we all had. Other than that I remember nothing. And I was completely fine without them. I had Haechan and the others back home. I wasn't lonely or anything. Now, I'm absolutely not complaining and I don't want to put a damper on your plans to meet up with the moms and run that bakery together, but I don't really see a reason to be excited, you know?” Soobin finishes his speech and looks back at his Mom. She looks kind of hurt. _Ah shit, that's not what I wanted._ He mentally curses at himself.

“Mom, I really don't mean it in a bad way. I'm really happy we moved back. Don't worry about me, you know I'm not one to dwell over past things. This is just gonna be a new beginning for us and as long as I have you with me, I'll be ok.” He says, smiling. His mom cracks a smile and goes in for a hug.

“I'm glad you're my son…” She says softly. Soobin smiles.

“I'm glad you're my mom…” He says back. His mom pulls away from the hug and looks at his face for a second, her gaze contemplative.

“Binnie… Do you really not remember anything? Nothing at all?” She asks, frowning. He shakes his head.

“Not a thing.” He says. “Nothing related to the boys at least. Why? Is there something I should remember?” He asks. She smiles and shakes her head no.

“Nope, just wondering.” She says, standing up and making her way to the door.  
“Get some sleep Binnie. You have a long day ahead of you.” And with one last smile, she leaves Soobin alone with his thoughts.

_________________________________________

“Soobin! What's taking you so long? Do you want to be late?!”

Soobin groans in frustration when he hears his mother calling for him. Of course, he didn't want to be late, but he absolutely could not leave the house without-

“Aha! Found it!” Soobin exclaims, happily, holding up the silver charm bracelet he was looking for. He stares at the little blue star charm spinning slowly, glinting in the light streaming from his window. He quickly puts it around his wrist and rushes down the stairs, grabbing his backpack from his mom, who is waiting near the steps. Flashing her a smile, he sprints out the door, laughing when he hears her shout for him to slow down. They both get to the car at the same time somehow, both laughing in each other's presence.

Most of the ride to school gets lost in useless chatting. Towards the end of the drive his mom smiles at him and asks, “So are you going to tell me why you were running late?”

Soobin sighs, holding up his wrist and showing her the bracelet that had evaded him this morning. “Can't leave without this, remember?” His mother smiles and shakes her head.

“You claim never to have missed the other boys, yet you wear that religiously.” She says, teasingly.

Soobin sighs again, before saying, “I honestly have never missed them because I don't really remember them. But for some reason, this bracelet…” He paused, trying to find the right words. “I feel a strange connection to it….I feel like if I don't wear it I'd be doing something bad….like breaking a promise…” He finishes.

“What promise would you be breaking?” His mom asks. Soobin shakes his head.

“I don't know but the feeling is always there. Whatever promise it is, if there even is one, I've forgotten it.” Soobin admits. His mother stays quiet, contemplating for awhile.

“If you've forgotten the promise…” His mom says slowly. “Maybe it's already been broken?” She says, as she brings the car to a stop in the parking lot.

Soobin frowns for a second, before quietly saying, “Maybe…”

His mother smiles and pats his shoulder.

“Well, we can talk about this later. You should get going before you get even later.” She says, jokingly. Soobin smiles at her one last time before saying, “Love you” and then he leaves the car and begins walking towards his new school.

_________________________________________

Soobin walks down the hallway, eyes reading the numbers on the lockers, as he mutters the one assigned to him under his breath.

“934, 934, 934…” He says, continuously. He speeds up slightly as his number gets closer. 930, 931, 932, 9-

Before Soobin can even register what happened, he's being pushed roughly to the floor. He looks up in shock, just in time to see a blond boy running as if his life depends on it. He glanced back at Soobin for a split second, gasping out the word, “Sorry” in his direction before continuing to sprint down the hall. Soobin sits there on the floor for a few seconds trying to figure out what just happened. He decides to drop it and is just about to stand when someone stops in front of him. He looks up to see a boy with black curls and a wide smile, holding his hand out towards him. Soobin stares at him for a second before deciding to accept the hand stretched out towards him. After being helped up, Soobin smiles at the stranger and bows.

“Thank you…” He says, slightly shy. The boy returns the smile and bow.

“No problem.” He says, “My name is Yeonjun. Choi Yeonjun.”

Soobin blanks for a second. _That's the name of one of the boys I was friends with._ He feels a strange tickle in the back of his head, but ignores it for the moment.

“I'm Choi Soobin.” He says. At that, Yeonjun seems to frown a bit, but it disappears soon after, so Soobin decides he must've imagined it. But when Soobin reaches his hand out towards the boy, instead of taking it he stares at the bracelet on his wrist and his frown returns. He smiles, somewhat hesitantly.

“Your bracelet is pretty. I have one in green.” He says, lifting his hand and showing Soobin his very own bracelet, a green star charm hanging from it. “You...went to the old school, right? The one that burned down? Seven years ago?” Soobins smiles and nods hesitantly.

“Uh, yeah…” An understanding seems to pass between the boys. Both know who the other is and their supposed past friendship but neither boy remembers the other. They are essentially strangers to each other. So they both decide not to talk about the very obvious past connecting them, both too hesitant and awkward to initiate that conversation.

“Well, I'll see you around. We should get to our classes.” Yeonjun says. Soobin nods vigorously, happy to be out of the situation.

“Right, see ya.” He says, hurriedly, and finally puts his things away in his locker. He walks away towards his first period class, feeling the sudden need to get to know Yeonjun better. He definitely won't admit it to anyone, but as he enters the classroom, he suddenly feels regret at not being able to remember one of his best friends. He hopes that one day he can remember and that they can start over. And maybe along the way, he can remember the promise he forgot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	3. Hope

Beomgyu kept his head down for the entirety of first period. Normally, this being a new school and all, he would've joined in on the self introductions with the rest of the class, but this school year had already started off on the wrong foot. He sighed and thought about how excited he was to start over, to possibly make new friends and avoid being bullied for no reason. He shook his head, now knowing it would be too good to be true. He had come back to Seoul after seven long years, excited to meet his supposed long lost best friends, but had run into a bully almost right away. He had been minding his own business, as he walked into the school, when a girl about his age approached him.

“Hi…” She had said, sweetly. “You new here?”

Beomgyu flashed her a wide grin, wanting to make a good first impression.

“Ya, just moved here actually.” He told her. “I'm Choi Beomgyu, by the way.” He said, holding out his hand. The girl smiled and shook his hand, but didn't let go right away. She let her hand linger for a second, before letting go and looking up at him through her dark lashes, and smiling shyly. 

“I'm Ryujin…” She said, inching a little closer. Now Beomgyu knew this was not a normal distance for new acquaintances, but he let it happen. Maybe his judgement had been clouded because of his excitement of making a new friend, of finally having a fresh start. Before he could say anything however, loud footsteps began to come towards them from down the hall. They both turned their heads to see a tall, handsome boy stomping towards them with anger in his gaze. Ryujin’s expression dropped immediately and she gripped Beomgyus arm. He looked at her in alarm.

“Wha-” His other arm was grabbed suddenly as the boy finally reached them, and he pulled Beomgyu away from Ryujin, roughly.

“Hey, who do you think are?” The boy demanded. Beomgyu just looked at him in shock, slowly beginning to piece together what had gone wrong.

“Jaemin, it's not what it looks like! Leave him alone!” Ryujin says, wringing her hands in distress. He turns his head towards her sharply and glared at her, as if daring her to speak again. He turned back to Beomgyu.

“What's your name, boy?” He growled. 

“It's none of your business.” Beomgyu said back, wrenching his arm free. He shocked himself with his words, but knew it was just the adrenaline talking and that soon he wouldn't be able to handle this guy. “Why don't you ask your girlfriend? She knows it.” He said, smirking.

“Have you ever felt a fist, kid?” Jaemin said in a dangerous voice. Beomgyu laughed in his face.

“Why? You gonna punch me with that?” He laughed, pointing to the boy’s hand. “I doubt that hand could break a pencil.”

“Oh, now you've done it.” And with that, Jaemin swung his fist towards him. Beomgyu jumped out of the way and decided now was his cue to leave. Shoving the boy out of the way, he made a run for it, not looking back even when he heard Ryujin call his name. He could hear the other boy’s footsteps gaining on him and turned left when the hallway forked, hoping the other boy would turn right. He turned his head back to see if Jaemin had followed but never got the chance. In his distracted state, he had slammed right into another boy. The boy fell to the ground, but Beomgyu kept running, glancing at the boy just long enough to say “Sorry” before continuing to run down the hall. He had made it to his first period class without even getting the chance to find his locker. But he didn't care as he collapsed in his chair and put his head down, already saddened that he had messed up once again. He stayed like that for the entire period, pessimistic thoughts filling his head. He gazed out the window, wishing for better parents that could've home schooled him, away from all the bullies. He stared at his red star charm, anticipating finding the friends he had been separated from for so long. If he was being completely honest, he really didn't remember them, but from the moment his stepmother had informed him about them, he thought of nothing else but finding them and finally having some semblance of a family. Ever since his dad had remarried after his own mother had died giving birth to him, his home had not been a cheerful place for him. And neither had school. But now he had a chance to pick up his life. The thought had crossed his mind that the other boys would probably not remember anything either and might not feel the need to be his friend, but he decided to cross that bridge when he got there. His train of thought is suddenly broken as he feels a tap at his shoulder. He looks up carefully, hoping it's not someone who wants to pick on him. He's instead met with a pleasant surprise, when he sees a boy smiling down at him, his dimples making his entire face shine. Beomgyu instinctively returns the dazzling smile and holds out his hand.

“Hey, I'm Choi Beomgyu. Did you need something?” He asks. The boy hesitates and Beomgyu senses it right away. He looks up at the boy, confused as to why his smile had suddenly dropped.

“I'm Choi Soobin…” The boy says, before Beomgyu can question him. A huge smile breaks out on his face. He knows this to be the name of one of his old friends.

“You're Soobin? Hi, nice to meet you again!” He says, cheerfully. Soobin looks up confused.

“You…remember me?” Soobin asks, hesitantly.

“Well, no. But I've wanted nothing more than to meet you all my life. I know we used to be friends, my stepmother told me.” He says, cheerfully. The older boy grins, all past hesitance fading away.

“Well, you seem like a nice enough kid. It shouldn't be hard for us to click again.” Soobin says, finally shaking his hand. Beomgyu notices the bracelet on his hand, that nearly matches his. He holds his hand up excitedly for the other to see.

“I have one too!” He exclaims. Soobin smiles fondly.

“Are you always this happy?” He asks. Beongyu’s smile falters and his shoulders droop a little. Soobin’s expression drops as well, seemingly realizing that he may have asked the wrong question. But before Soobin can comfort him, Beomgyu speaks again.

“No, but I think finding you and the others might be the key to my happiness.” He says, locking his gaze with Soobin's. Soobin's smile returns then.

“Well if that's the case, then we better find the others fast so you never have to worry about sadness again.” He proclaims. Beomgyu smiles genuinely and for the first time in a while, his heart felt a little lighter, as a ray of hope shines through.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	4. Trust In Us

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: there will be some evil characters in this story and just because they have the same name as some idols, does not mean that I am hating on these idols in any way, shape, or form. I adore every one of the idols mentioned in this story, but for the sake of the plot, some of them will be evil. Thank you all again for reading😊

Yeonjun had managed to get through the first four classes of school without talking to a single person. He was much too deep in his own thoughts about meeting Soobin that morning. When he woke up that day, he had been so confident that he would know exactly how to react and what to say when he met his long lost friends. Turns out he was completely wrong. His mind had completely blanked when he realized just how much of a stranger he was to Soobin and vice versa. Shaking his head, he thinks he still should have said  _ something _ about their previous friendship despite not remembering a thing.  _ Next time I see him, I'm gonna say something. _ He decides. It turns out he doesn't have to wait long. As he walks towards the cafeteria for lunch, he hears two loud voices talking animatedly in the halls.

“No way! That was you!?” The first voice is somewhat familiar.

“Yes! I'm sorry again!” Yeonjun doesn't recognize the second voice.

He turns around to see Soobin walking down the hall with a blond boy at his side. He is laughing excitedly and Yeonjun instantly feels a fondness for him and his bright, happy attitude. Soobin is smiling affectionately at the boy, when he suddenly turns his head to see Yeonjun watching them.

“Yeonjun!” Soobin says, smiling and running up to him. Yeonjun smiles hesitantly, but waves nonetheless.

“Hey Soobin.” He says.

“Soobin hyung!” The other boy says, catching up to them. He glances at Yeonjun and then back at Soobin. “Is this him?” He asks. Soobin laughs and nods.

“Yes, this is Choi Yeonjun.” 

The boy smiles up at him.

“I'm Choi Beomgyu.” He says, reaching out to shake his hand. Yeonjun happily complies and notices the red star bracelet on his wrist.

“How coincidental that we all decided to wear our bracelets today.” Yeonjun notices. Soobin laughs while Beomgyu smiles and says,

“It's a good thing, too. I probably wouldn't believe any of you were my friends had you not worn it.” He admits. The boys nod in agreement.

“Anyways, we were just headed to the cafeteria. Are you coming?” Soobin asks. Yeonjun begins to nod but then stops himself as an idea occurs to him.

“Hey, do you guys wanna go eat up on the roof?” He asks, a smile slowly forming on his face. The other boys look at him in excitement.

“Can we? We won't get in trouble?” Beomgyu asks. Yeonjun shrugs.

“Probably not. I'm a senior and teachers normally let seniors do whatever the heck they want.” He says, grinning. “Besides it's not like we're hurting anyone or anything.” 

“That's true…” Soobin agrees. “Ok let's do it!” And with that, they're off.

________________________________________________________________

After a quick stop at the cafeteria to buy pizza, the boys find themselves sitting in a circle on the roof together, enjoying each other's presence. Yeonjun begins to wonder why he was so hesitant in the first place, when these boys are so nice. He already finds himself anticipating meeting with the remaining two friends in their group. The three boys briefly introduce themselves to each other. They learn that they are all just one year apart from each other, Yeonjun being the oldest at 17, Soobin next at 16 in his junior year, and Beomgyu, the youngest, 15 and in his sophomore year. They talk of nothing else but how excited they are to meet the other two boys. A few minutes into their conversation, Soobin suddenly changes the topic to when Beomgyu crashed into him.

“Hey, Beomie, why were you even running in the morning?” Soobin asks. Beomgyu smiles at the nickname, before frowning immediately after when he remembers the reason he was running.

“Well…” He says, sighing. “I ran into a bully. But I mean, I guess it was my fault. I got too friendly with his girlfriend and he didn't like that. He got pissed and I only fueled his anger until he decided to get physical.” 

At this, both the boys glanced up at Beomgyu, worry in their eyes.

“It's ok, he didn't hit me. I dodged him and ran as fast as I could. He was following me so I tried to throw him off. That's how I ended up crashing into you. You didn't get hurt, did you?” He says, looking up at Soobin. Soobin shakes his head.

“No, I'm fine. But Beomgyu, why do you say that it's your fault?” He asks, worriedly. Beomgyu shrugs dejectedly.

“I mean it always is. I shouldn't have gotten so friendly with her. And even if I had, I shouldn't have provoked him the way I did. I just, always mess up.” He says, eyes downcast.

“What do you mean, ‘always’?” Yeonjun asks. “Has this happened before?”

Beomgyu nods, slowly. 

“I've always been bullied… I thought it would be different this time. I thought I'd be able to start over…”

Yeonjun and Soobin share a glance. They both move in close to Beomgyu and put their hands around him.

“Beomgyu, listen to me.” Yeonjun says, softly. “It's not your fault. Not this incident and none of the others either. You are honestly the sweetest kid I've ever met and I've known you for less than a day.”

“Yeonjun hyung is right. Some people are just like that, sometimes. Don't ever think that you're being bullied because of your own faults. And from now on if anyone ever bothers you, you come tell us right away. We'll protect you.” Soobin says. Beomgyu smiles softly and gives both of his hyungs a hug.

“You guys are everything I ever wanted.” He whispers.

“And you're more than we could ever ask for.” Yeonjun says, patting his head. 

The three boys pull away from the hug, all in much higher spirits than they were before.

“Hey guys!” Beomgyu says, suddenly. “I completely forgot. I made brownies! No one eats them at home so I thought might as well bring them to school!” 

“Ooh really? I love brownies.” Yeonjun squeals, excitement in his eyes. Beomgyu laughs at the childish look of ecstasy on his face.

“They're in my locker. I'm gonna go get them, ok?” Beomgyu says. Soobin nods.

“Hurry back!” He says, and with that Beomgyu goes back into the building to grab the much anticipated brownies.

________________________________________________________________

Beomgyu practically skips all the way to his locker. He had managed to find some time in between periods to put his stuff away and had been lucky enough not to run into Jaemin. He opens his locker and quickly finds the container with the brownies inside. He grabs it and moves to close the door, but he never gets the chance. A hand comes out of nowhere and slams the locker door shut, the resounding  _ clang _ making Beomgyu flinch, slightly.

“Well, well, well…” A familiar voice says. Beomgyu’s blood turns to ice, when he realizes who is speaking. Before he can say anything, a hand grabs his shoulder and turns him around roughly, making him come face to face with Jaemin. The smirk on his face is menacing and Beomgyu hates to admit it, but he's terrified out of his mind. His hyungs aren't here to protect him.  _ I should deal with it. I shouldn't burden them with this. I can handle him myself. _ He pushes Jaemin out of his way and attempts to make a run for it again, but Jaemin is ready this time. He tackles him to the floor, punching him in the gut a few times, before Beomgyu kicks him away. Jaemin grunts and grips his stomach. Beomgyu smirks, happy to have landed a hit. He stands, wincing a little at the pain in his stomach. He has little time to focus on that, before Jaemin runs at him, his fist raised for another punch. Beomgyu dodges it and and grabs his arm, using his momentum to fling him to the ground. He jumps on top of him, punching relentlessly, before getting elbowed in the nose. He falls back, holding a hand to his nose, trying to stop it from bleeding. Before either of them can stand, they hear footsteps coming in their direction. They both turn their head to see a boy that looks about their age or younger. He stops short and stares in dismay at the scene in front of him. Jaemin pays no mind to the boy and takes this moment of distraction to his advantage. He leaps towards Beomgyu, twisting his arm behind his back to prevent him from fighting back. Beomgyu cries out in pain and tries to get out of Jaemin’s grip. The boy suddenly grabs on to Jaemin and attempts to yank him off, but gets elbowed in the face before he can do anything.

“You stay out of it.” Jaemin growls in his direction. The boys eyes widen in fear.

“Sh-should I get a teacher?” He asks, ready to run back to the cafeteria to tell someone. 

“No!” Beomgyu yells, knowing full well that bullies didn't care what teachers said. Jaemin chuckled, twisting his arm further.

“Ya, listen to this little shit, kid, or you'll end up like him.” Jaemin says. 

“Hey!” Beomgyu yells. “Go to the roof. Get my friends!” He says. The boy nods and darts away. Jaemin laughs.

“I'll just beat them up too kid.” He says, darkly.

________________________________________________________________

“He's been gone for some time…” Soobin notices. Yeonjun nods in agreement.

“We should go get him.” Yeonjun says, rising to his feet.

“I know his locker number.” Soobin says, standing up as well. Before either of them can take a step towards the door leading back into the building, it slams open, revealing a terrified looking boy.

“Your friend! He's getting beat up! You have to help him!” The boy shouts. Both boys eyes widen as they share a horrified glance.

“Take us there.” Yeonjun says sternly, turning back to face the boy. He nods once and runs back out through the door, the older boys closely following him.

________________________________________________________________

They come to an abrupt stop right in front of Beomgyu's locker. A tall, menacing looking boy has Beomgyu pinned against the wall, his fist raised. Thankfully, he never lands the hit, before Soobin and the new kid grab both his arms and drag him away from Beomgyu. Beomgyu slides to the floor, sighing gratefully. Jaemin struggles, but is unable to move against their grip. Yeonjun is absolutely furious and decides to let him have it. He draws back his fist, but before it can collide with Jaemin's face, Soobin suddenly cuts in.

“No! Stop!” He shouts, holding on to Yeonjun’s arm. “No violence. Hold him for me.” 

Yeonjun complies and Soobin takes his place in front of Jaemin. He stares at him with an intimidating glare. Surprisingly, Jaemin actually flinches and stops struggling for a bit.

“Hello Jaemin…” Soobin says, continuously staring at him. “I'm Soobin and that's Yeonjun.” He says, gesturing behind him. “If you ever mess with any of us ever again, you're going to have to deal with me and him. We aren't going to hurt you right now, but we won't hesitate to get you expelled with a couple of bruises if need be. So I better not see you near us again.” He says, turning up the power in his glare. Jaemin grunts, annoyed.

“Whatever…” He mutters. Soobin tilts his head.

“What was that? I didn't quite catch it.” He demands. Jaemin visibly gulps and shakes his head.

“That's what I thought.” Soobin says. He nods at the two holding him up. “Let him go.” They release him and he rises to his feet. He walks away, but not before turning to glare at Soobin. His glare turns out to be more of a frightened glance, however, when he catches sight of Soobin's dark gaze once again. After that he slinks away without a second glance.

As soon as he's out of earshot, Soobin sinks down to his knees.

“Oh my God, that was terrifying. I didn't think that would work.” He says, voice shaking. Yeonjun pats his shoulder.

“You did just fine.” He says.

“Ya, you were more terrifying than him.” Beomgyu says, from behind them.

“Oh my God, Beomgyu! Are you ok?!” Soobin screams, immediately rushing over to him. Beomgyu laughs a little.

“Ya more or less. My wrist really hurts though. So does my stomach.” He admits.

“Do you wanna go to the nurse's office?” Yeonjun suggests. Beomgyu shakes his head vigorously.

“No, no, I don't wanna answer questions.” He says.

“Uh, I can help…” A voice says from behind them. The boys turn around, realizing they completely forgot about the boy who had helped them.

“My parents are both doctors, so I always have a first aid kit…” He trails off, looking unsure. Yeonjun smiles kindly.

“Of course, we would greatly appreciate that, but only if you want to.” The boy nods right away.

“Alright then, you can grab your kit and we can fix our Beomie up on the roof, ok?” The boy smiles and nods again.

Soon enough, they're all back up on the roof and the mystery boy has just finished wrapping gauze around Beomgyu's wrist.

“Don't move it too much and keep this if it starts hurting again.” He says, handing Beomgyu a pain relieving cream and more gauze. And that's when the others notice what they had missed before. The boy was wearing a charm bracelet with a yellow star charm hanging from it.

“Hey…” Soobin says, cautiously. “What's your name?” 

“Huening Kai…” The boy answers. All three boys exchange glances with each other.

“Your bracelet.” Yeonjun starts. The boys eyes narrowed.

“What about my bracelet?” He says, defensively.

“Well… “ He says, pulling back his sleeve. “We all have the same one.” 

Beomgyu and Soobin nod, both pulling up their own sleeves.

The boy's face instantly lights up.

“O-oh my gosh. That's insane! You must be Soobin, right?” He says, pointing towards Soobin. Soobin grins and nods.

“How did you guess?” He asks.

“You were always the tallest in the pictures, too.” He says, grinning.

“And the rest of you are…?”

“I'm Yeonjun.”

“And I'm Beomgyu.”

Kai nods and looks at each of them with a soft smile on his face.

“I'm so happy to meet you guys again. I hope we can make new memories together.”

“And maybe remember some of them this time.” Soobin says. Kai looks at him, shocked.

“You don't remember anything either?” He asks, incredulously. Soobin shakes his head no.

“Neither do the rest of us.” Beomgyu says.

“Wow, that's strange. I wonder why that is…” Kai says.

“It's ok, Kai. Let's not think about that for now.” Yeonjun says.

“For now let's just do what you said and make new memories together.” Soobin says. 

“Oh no!” Beomgyu shrieks suddenly. 

“What's wrong, Beomie!?” Soobin screams, turning around to look at him.

“My brownies!” He says, sadly. Kai laughs at that and holds up a container.

“Don't worry, I picked them up.” He says, grinning.

“I like you already.” Beomgyu says, giggling.

And the four of them enjoyed the brownies and each other's company for the rest of the lunch period.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	5. Five Pointed Star

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello readers!  
> I won't be able to update very frequently for the remainder of this year due to exams and previous commitments. However I won't completely stop either, there'll just be more time between each update. By next year, I will hopefully have a set schedule of once a week. Thank you for reading once again and sorry for the wait!💜

When lunch ended, Kai was saddened about parting from the other boys for the last three classes of the day. Luckily for him, he ended up having the next two classes with Beomgyu. He was very happy that he had ended up with him, because in all honesty, he was still very worried about him and would rather not leave him alone when Jaemin was still lurking around. The two of them had so much fun together and Kai hoped that the two hyungs were having just as much fun with each other as he was with Beomgyu. Sadly, the classes ended too soon and he had to leave Beomgyu to go to his last period class. Beomgyu comforted him, saying that they would meet again in an hour on the rooftop. Kai made him promise and when Beomgyu complied, he went off in the direction of his classroom in much higher spirits than before. He made it to class just in time and sat down right as the bell rang.

“Hello, class, I'm assuming by now you all know each other, yes?” The teacher asks. Everyone nods at her. She smiles widely and says,

“This is a study hall period so you can do whatever you want but use indoor voices. You are to stay in here or sit in the library next door but nowhere else. Understood?” the students all echoed back that they understood. Kai saw a few students go up to the front and let the teacher know that they would be heading to the library. Looking around, he saw that the library would be a better option for him as well, considering the fact that he knew no one and really wasn't in the mood to strike up conversation. He rises to his feet and walks over to the teachers desk. 

“May I also go to the library?” he asks, smiling. The teacher smiles, then looks down at his name on the attendance sheet, putting a little check next to it. Then she looks back up at him and nods.

He leaves the classroom and walks the short distance to the library. The library is immensely spacious, lined up with towering shelves filled with books. It somehow looks amazingly grand, but warm and cozy at the same time. Kai roams around for awhile, glancing at the small sofas and rugs placed around the library, vaguely wondering if he could take a quick nap. Eventually, he ends up finding his favorite book, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, and plops down on one of the soft sofas to read.

Time passes by so quickly as he reads that he barely notices that school is almost over. He glances down at his watch and smiles when he sees that there are only 5 minutes left until school ends. He puts his book away and begins walking towards the door, when he sees a boy carrying so many books that he can barely see where he's going. Just as he’s about to step towards him to help, the boy loses his balance and topples over, landing on one knee, as half of his books fall to the ground. Kai rushes forward, his forehead creasing in worry.

“Here let me get those for you.” he says, bending down to gather the books in his arms. The boy shakes his head hurriedly.

“No, no its ok, I got them.” he says, rising to his feet. Now it’s Kai’s turn to shake his head.

“Why were you carrying so many in the first place? You shouldn’t be afraid to ask for help next time, ok?” Kai says, standing up with the boy’s books. He looks at the boy and sees that something has changed in his eyes. It almost looks like he’s staring at him in awe. 

“Th-thank you…” the boy stutters, his gaze dropping to his feet. Kai frowns, but decides not to question it. _He’s probably just shy,_ he decides.

“No problem. Promise me you’ll ask for help next time,ok?” he says, smiling. The boy looks up and nods.

“I promise…” he all but whispers. 

Kai begins walking back towards the library’s exit, when the boy suddenly speaks again.

“Ah, darn it!”

“What’s wrong?” Kai questions, looking back.

“I...lost something.” He mutters, looking worried.

“What did you lose? I can help you find it.” Kai says, soothingly, trying to gain his trust.

“It's a bracelet…” he says. Kai nods and begins walking back from where they came from.

“I’ll check this aisle and you can check that one, ok?” Kai says, directing the boy to the left most aisle in the library. The boy nods and walks off, while Kai does the same. He keeps his eyes on the ground as he walks, glancing up only occasionally to ensure he doesn’t bump into anyone. He suddenly notices something shiny on the ground. When he reaches it, he sees that it’s a silver charm bracelet reflecting the light from above. He bends down to pick it up and nearly stops breathing when he sees the purple star hanging from it. He lifts it up to his face, watching as the star twirls around slowly. He glances back down the aisle. _Could it be? We found the last one?_ For some strange reason, he feels as if this is the first time he has ever felt this complete in his life. 

“Hey, I think I found it!” Kai yells, walking back down the aisle, quickly. The boy walks back as well and meets Kai back where they started.

“Is this it?” Kai asks, eyes wide. The boy frowns slightly, before a small smile appears on his face.

“Yes, that’s the one.” He says, reaching his hand out. Kai drops it in his palm, with the biggest smile on his face as he watches the boy fasten it around his wrist. The boy finally looks up and frowns.

“Why are you smiling at me like that?” He asks, somewhat hesitantly. Kai shrugs, but then decides to go for it.

“You’re Kang Taehyun, aren’t you?” He asks, the smile persisting. The boys eyes widen slightly, as he draws back.

“How do you know that?” he asks, eyes narrowed in suspicion. Kai doesn’t answer with words, but rather he chooses to simply pull down his sleeve and lift up his wrist, smiling all the while. The boys eyes widen again as his own smile starts to slowly grow on his face.

“N-no way.” He gasps out. Kai laughs endearingly.

“Yes way! By the way, I'm-”

“NO WAIT!” Taehyun yells suddenly. Kai looks at him in shock, not realizing the soft spoken boy could produce such a noise. Taehyun smiles sheepishly before apologizing.

“S-sorry. I just wanted to see if I could guess who you were before you told me.”

Kai nods in understanding.

“Go ahead, impress me. “ He says, grinning. Taehyun nods and proceeds to stare at him intensely, his eyes narrowed.

“Hmmmm… I think you must be Huening Kai…” He says, finally. Kai's eyes widen in disbelief.

“But how…?” He says, unable to voice his surprise. Taehyun shrugs, smiling.

“You look just like your pictures. Just bigger.”

Kai laughs at that, before stopping suddenly and grabbing on to the other boys hand.

“Oh my god, we're late! C'mon the others are waiting!” He says.

“Others? You guys already found each other?!” Taehyun asks, as they run.

“Yup!” Kai says, looking back at him. 

Taehyun smiles widely and thinks to himself, _finally five are one again._

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Where is he?” Beomgyu says, worriedly for the 3rd time in two minutes.

“Don't worry Beomie. I'm sure he's just running a little late.” Yeonjun says, putting his arm around his shoulder.

“I know but what would be holding him up? It's the first day! Nothing should be stopping him from rushing out the door….” Beomgyu says, playing with the gauze on his wrist.

“Maybe he found our last friend…” Soobin says, gazing thoughtfully at the gloomy sky. He wondered why the clouds had gathered so quickly when it had been so sunny in the morning. He has little time to focus on that however, since the door to the roof flies open suddenly and Kai rushes out.

“Kai!” Beomgyu yells happily, as he runs to him and gives him a big hug. Kai laughs and hugs him back, waving at his hyungs at the same time.

“It's not just me though.” He says, smiling. Both Soobin and Yeonjun share a shocked glance, while Beomgyu stares at Kai questioningly. 

“Did you…” Soobin begins.

“Find the last friend? Yes.” Kai says, triumphantly. Then he looks back towards the still open door. “You can come out now Taehyun.” He says. Looking back at the others, he whispers, “ he's quite shy, so don't jump him guys.” 

Soobin rolls his eyes at that, before fixing his eyes on the door, where Taehyun is peeking his head out from. He watches as Taehyun slowly makes his way to them, the happiness and excitement evident on his face, his purple star bracelet hanging from his wrist.

“Well, I guess we're finally five again.” Soobin says. Taehyun shakes his head at that.

“We were always five on our own, but together we are one.” He says.

The other boys smiles widely at that.

“I guess you're right…” Yeonjun says, stepping forward and holding out his hand. “It's nice to meet you again, Taehyun. I'm-”

“WAIT, WAIT!” Taehyun yells, shocking everyone. Kai chuckles slightly as Taehyun glances back at him with an embarrassed smile.

“Sorry guys, I wanted to guess….” He explains.

“Ah, ok. Well go ahead, let's see if you can get us right.” Yeonjun says. Taehyun nods and looks at each of them in turn, pausing for a few seconds on each face. Finally he points to Soobin.

“You're definitely Soobin.” He says. “You've always been the tallest.” 

Soobin smiles and nods, watching as Taehyun’s gaze moves to Yeonjun.

“Yeonjun…?” He asks. Yeonjun nods happily. Then Taehyun finally turns to Beomgyu.

“Then you must be Beomgyu.” He says, triumphantly. All three boys look at each other in awe.

“How did you guess?” Soobin asks. Taehyun laughs and shrugs.

“What can I say? You all look like big versions of your pictures.” He says. They all laugh at that, before sitting in a circle on the roof.

“I think we should have a group chat, you guys.” Beomgyu says. All the boys agree and they do just that. After making the group chat, the boys all marvel at the fact that they all own the same bracelets. They discuss theories on who they think got them for the boys. As they all talk, Soobin looks at each of the bracelets in turn, his smile growing each time. In the morning he had told his mother he wasn't really excited to see the boys again, but now that he's met them, he can't help but let his excitement at making new memories soar. When his eyes finally lock on the last bracelet, Taehyun’s, a sharp pain suddenly stabs through his head. He lifts his hand up and presses it against his forehead.

“Owww…” He groans, shutting his eyes against the pain. The boys look up at him in worry.

“Are you ok?” Yeonjun asks, a hand rubbing Soobin’s back. Soobin slowly opens his eyes, as the pain vanishes as quickly as it had come. He nods at the rest of the boys.

“Ya, I'm ok. My head just hurt for a second there.” He says, smiling at their concern for him.

“Ok that's good. Tell us if it hurts again.” Beomgyu says. The other boys nod in agreement, before going back to their conversations. Kai suddenly speaks up.

“Guys, where are our parents? It's been like 15 minutes since school ended.” He says. 

“I'll text my mom.” Soobin says. He looks down at his phone to see that he already has a text from her that was sent 5 minutes ago.

**Mom💜**

Hey, binnie! So sry, me and the girls are a little behind. We're still setting up at the bakery. You can come over here if u want or u can go home if u want.

Oh actually can u come over to the bakery? U know where it is right? I wanted u to see the place from the inside... 😊 I'm assuming uv met the other boys by now. Tell them to come over too. Their mothers r here as well. Cya soon!💜

Soobin smiles at the text and types out a quick reply.

**Me**

Ofc I'll come mom! How did u know I've met them? They r amazing I'll tell u all abt them later. Yes I know where it is! We'll be there soon!💜

“Guys let's go. They're all at the bakery apparently.” Soobin tells everyone, rising to his feet. The other boys all follow suit and they go back into the building. Just as they're about to leave the school, Kai stops everyone.

“It's going to rain soon, did any of you bring umbrellas?” He asks. Yeonjun and Beomgyu shake their heads, while the other two nod and run back to their lockers to grab them.

“I have one.” Kai says, pulling one out of his backpack.

“It's ok, I don't mind getting wet.” Yeonjun says, smiling. Soobin and Taehyun return with their umbrellas. Soobin hands his to Beomgyu.

“You three can have umbrellas. We hyungs don't mind a little water, right Junnie Hyung?” He says, grinning. Yeonjun nods. The other boys are reluctant but eventually realize that there wouldn't be enough room under the umbrellas for all five of them given how small they were. The most they could do for their hyungs would be to walk faster. With that settled, the boys step out of the building into the light drizzle. As they continued to walk, the rain got stronger, but the boys didn't mind, they were just happy to be together. By the time they got to the bakery, both hyungs were soaking wet, but despite that they all walked in laughing and talking happily.

“Boys!” Soobin's mother came running, wrapping each boy up in a hug. The boys happily returned the hugs. Another woman peeks out from behind a door.

“Are the boys here?” She asks. Her eyes land on Kai and she smiles widely.

“How was your day, boys?” She asks coming closer. The boys all smile and say that their day was amazing.

“Oh, you poor thing.” She says, suddenly walking over to Beomgyu and gently taking his injured wrist in her hand.

“It's ok.” He says, smiling. “Kai fixed me up well.”

The woman smiles.

“That's my boy.” She says, patting Kai's hair as he smiles uncontrollably. 

“But...how come Soobin is so wet?” She asks, abruptly, her eyes landing on Soobin's soaked clothes and dripping hair.

“Oh the hyungs didn't have umbrellas.” Kai explains, turning to glance at them both. His mom shakes his head.

“But Yeonjun is basically dry?” She asks, confused. That's when the boys notice that she is correct and that Yeonjun is only slightly damp compared to Soobin. Even Yeonjun looks confused as to why Soobin is absolutely soaked while he is not.

“Did you trip or something?” He asks. Soobin shakes his head, frowning. After much confusion, everyone decides to drop it, since no one can come up with a possible explanation. No one stops thinking about it though and they all occasionally glance over at the two boys in confusion.

They meet the rest of the moms after that and then Soobin's mom takes the liberty to show them around. The bakery is quite spacious and cozy. There are rows of tables set up overlooking the city through huge windows that cover the entire right wall. The boys ask if they can help set up the inside, which consists of the kitchen and the pantry. The mothers refuse saying that the boys should rest after their day at school, but the boys continuously insist, so they allow them to help.

“Hey Tae! Can you help me open this box?” Beomgyu calls from one end of the kitchen.

“Coming!” Taehyun says from where he's working by the shelves. He helps Beomgyu tear open the box and take everything out of it.

“This is all stuff for cakes, so I can take these back to the shelves and let the moms take care of the utensils ok?” Taehyun says.

“Ok. I'll help you by the shelves.” Beomgyu replies.

“Ok but take it easy on your wrist ok?” Taehyun says. Beomgyu smiles and nods before they both go back to put the things away.

Kai and Soobin walk into the kitchen and see that the utensils have yet to be put away.

“The moms must be really busy if they weren't able to get to these yet. Let's put them away for them.” Soobin says. Kai nods and begins gathering some of the spoons and spatulas in his arms.

“You can grab the trays, ok Hyung?” He says. He turns around when he gets no response and sees Soobin leaning against the wall with his head in his hand.

“Hey are you ok?” Kai asks, putting down the supplies and walking back to his hyung.

“Yes, yes, I'm ok don't worry. Just gimme a sec…” Soobin says, hurriedly. Kai frowns, his forehead creasing with worry. Now that he's standing closer to him, he can see that Soobin is shivering slightly since his clothes are still damp.

“Is your head hurting again?” He asks, gently. Soobin pauses before nodding slightly. Kai puts a hand against his forehead.

“Well, you don't have a temperature so that's good. But you're not doing any more work for today.” Kai says with finality.

“No, no!” Soobin protests, lifting his head up to stare at Kai with pleading eyes. “I can still help.” Kai shakes his head.

“Nope, you look like you're going to collapse any second.” Kai says, walking back towards the box. Soobin follows him with quick steps.

“No, I do-” He trips suddenly in his rush to catch up to Kai, and nearly falls to the floor, before Kai whirls around to steady him.

“I rest my case.” Kai says, smirking, his hands on Soobin's shoulders. Soobin sighs in frustration.

“That's not fair, Kai. I wanna help.” 

Kai's face softens as he sighs as well, and meets Soobin's eyes.

“Soobinnie Hyung...your health is more important than this. I want you to take care of yourself before doing anything else. I've been pampered all my life by my parents, not that I'm complaining of course. But now after seven long years, I finally have the chance to take care of someone. Will you please let me do that for you?” Kai says, a hopeful smile on his face. Soobin sighs once again, this time in defeat. After several seconds pass, he finally looks up at Kai.

“Fine, I’ll rest…” He says, smiling tiredly. Kai's face lights up.

“Good.” He says, grinning. “Don't worry hyung. We'll do everything, you should just rest.” 

Then he grabs Soobin's hand and leads him out the kitchen door and back into the main sitting area. He sits him down at one of the tables and brings some Tylenol for him.

“Here take this and try to sleep.” He says. Soobin nods and takes the pill, then puts his head down on his arms. Kai is just about to go back into the kitchen, when one of the moms steps out. She smiles at him and waves. He waves back and says.

“Hello, Mrs…”

“Choi. I’m Beomgyu’s stepmother.” she says, smiling. “He was telling me about how you helped him when he injured his wrist today. I just thought I should thank you personally.” she says, a big smile on her face.

“It’s no problem at all, Mrs. Choi.” Kai says, returning the smile. Mrs. Choi’s gaze suddenly falls on Soobin and she frowns, worriedly.

“Is he alright?” she asks. Soobin glances up, sensing that the question had been about him.

“He’s not feeling well.” Kai explains. Her gaze only becomes more concerned as she steps closer to them.

“I hope he doesn’t catch a cold. His clothes still haven’t completely dried.” she says.

As if on cue, Soobin feels a little tickle in his nose and suddenly sneezes into his arm. He groans in frustration.

“I don’t wanna be sick.” he whines, letting his head fall back into his arms. Mrs. Choi steps forward and pats his head.

“Oh, Soobin. Try and get some sleep, I’m sure you’ll feel better when you wake up.”

“Ok…” he says, morosely, shutting his eyes. Mrs. Choi gestures for Kai to follow her back inside the kitchen. When they get inside, they meet the other boys by the pantry.

“Hey boys, did you hear our plans for tonight?” Mrs. Choi asks suddenly.

“Plans?” Beomgyu questions. “What plans, Mom?”

“Well, me and the girls were so excited to meet again after so long that we decided to stay over at one of our places for the night. It would be a great opportunity to catch up for us as well as you boys. What do think?” she asks. The boys didn’t need to answer, however, since she could already tell how excited they were just by the expressions on their faces.

“Yes! I approve!” Taehyun all but yells.

“Whose house are we staying at?” Yeonjun asks.

“We’re staying at your place.” she says, grinning. 

“Whoa really? That’s awesome! Guys there’s this game that I absolutely _have to_ show you. You better remind me ok?” Yeonjun tells the boys. Kai grins and gives him the ok sign, while the other two nod back at him.

“Did you tell Soobin Hyung? Where is he by the way? Let’s go tell him, guys!” Beomgyu says, walking off to find Soobin.

“Ah, wait!” Kai says, wrapping an arm around Beomgyu to stop him. “He isn’t feeling well, so I told him to rest.” 

Beomgyu’s expression drops.

“What’s wrong? Is his head hurting him again?” he asks. Kai nods.

“Ya and he’s got a slight cold.”

The other boys mood significantly drops but they make a promise to take care of him and make sure he gets rest. 

At long last, the entire bakery is finally set up. The moms thank the boys constantly and promise to treat the boys sometime or give them a discount when the bakery is finally open to the public. They pack up their things and wake up Soobin, letting him know the plan and then letting his mother take over. They all get into their own cars with their mothers, saying bye to each other with the promise of meeting again in a few minutes.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Guys, come in, come in.” Yeonjun says, ushering everyone in along with his mother. The other boys marvel at the size of his house.

“Bro you never told us you have a mansion!” Beomgyu says, looking betrayed. Yeonjun laughs at that, considering they had just met today.

“Well, you're all welcome to stay anytime you want.” Yeonjun’s mom says. “Why don't you show them to their rooms?” She says, addressing her son. “Or you can all sleep in the den together? For that sleepover feel, you know? Do you want me to bring some mattresses?” 

“No, it's ok I'll get them.” Yeonjun replies. He leads them to the den and tells them to wait while he brings the mattresses. They all plop down on one of the sofas to wait for him.

“Guys…” Kai says, suddenly.

“Yes?” Taehyun replies, turning to look at him.

“I know that, technically, we just met today, but...I feel like I've known you guys all my life…” 

Beomgyu nods in agreement. “I feel that way too.”

“Same…” Soobin says.

“Me too.” Taehyun says, nodding. “It's really strange though...I don't even remember anything about you guys. In essence, you guys should all be strangers to me and each other.”

“And yet we're not…” Beomgyu says.

“It's as if only our memories disappeared, but the bond remained…” Kai says.

“Something's not right…” Taehyun says, suddenly, a frown on his face.

“What makes you say that?” Beomgyu asks.

“I don't really know…” He says, shrugging. “Something just feels off. I feel like we should have remembered _something._ I know it's been seven years, but still. And also…” He pauses for a second before continuing. “I feel like there's something important that we all forgot.”

The boys all fell silent, letting that sink in. Something important? But what could it be? And the boys would be lying if they said they hadn't felt the same way Taehyun had.

“Why are y'all so quiet?”

The boys all jump at the sound of Yeonjun's voice. They were all so immersed in their thoughts they hadn't noticed that Yeonjun had already finished setting up the mattresses. They quickly recovered from their shock and filled him in on what he had missed. Yeonjun agreed that it was very strange and that he had also felt that he was missing something.

“Well, we can talk more about this in the morning. I think for now we should get some sleep. Hey Soob, could you-” that's when they realize that Soobin hasn't spoken for a long time. Glancing over at him, they see that he has already fallen fast asleep.

“Aww he must have been really tired.” Kai says.

“Ya he must have… Do you think he should go to school tomorrow?” Yeonjun asks. Kai shrugs.

“There's no real way to tell at this point. We'll just see if he's feeling better in the morning.” Kai says. Yeonjun nods at that.

“Alright then, Beomgyu could you please grab the blankets from the room next door? I forgot to get them.” Yeonjun asks.

Beomgyu nods and walks off to the next room. Yeonjun lets the younger two choose their pillows and get situated in the meantime. He glances over at Soobin and notices how uncomfortable his sleeping position looks. He walks over to the sofa and lifts Soobin up carefully. He walks back to the mattresses and gently places him back down. Soobin stirs slightly, but doesn't wake up. Yeonjun sighs contentedly, just as Beomgyu returns with the blankets. The boys all lie down comfortably and talk for hours until they eventually fall asleep, their dreams filled with peaceful scenes and thoughts of each other. All of their dreams were happy…

That is, all except Soobin's...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	6. Alone, I'm Drowning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning: depictions of drowning

Soobin really wasn't feeling well as the night went on. He would continuously wake up at abrupt times for some reason or other. Sometimes it was because he felt so uncomfortably hot under his blanket that he just had to remove it. Other times, it was the exact opposite, the freezing cold spurring him to wrap his blanket around him tighter or try to find more. This time, it's his itchy throat. He wakes up coughing so hard that he worries he might wake up his friends. One glance over at them, however, proves his worries wrong, as they continue to sleep peacefully just like they had been every other time he had woken up. With a sigh, he rises from the mattress, and walks sleepily over to the kitchen to get some water. He steals a glance at the clock on the wall and sighs again when he sees that it's almost 3 in the morning. He vaguely wonders if he can convince his mom to let him skip school tomorrow. 

Getting a glass from the cabinet, he fills it up at the sink, and leans against the counter, taking slow sips, relishing the way it soothes his throat. Putting the glass down next to the sink, he walks back to the den and settles in again, finally feeling as if he might be able to sleep peacefully.

Of course, he wasn't expecting a nightmare to get in the way of his plans…

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The dream started off strangely. As it began, he already had an eerie feeling of deja Vu. _Maybe it's a memory, rather than a dream?_ He was on a beach, the sun shining brightly in the sky, reflecting off the sand, making it look like glitter instead. He was surrounded by 4 young boys, all probably no bigger than 9 years old. He himself was younger, he knew it, in that all-knowing way dreams work. 5 women sat on the sand not far off. Soobin immediately knew that these must be their mothers, since they had changed very little. The biggest change was that all of them, including the boys, seemed happier.

His younger self seemed to be doing all the work for him, playing in the sand with the other boys. The present Soobin was essentially just a bystander, watching through the eyes of his younger self. 

The boys crept closer and closer to the water and Soobin began to feel uneasy. Apparently his younger self didn't harbor the same fear of water that he did now. In fact, he seemed more comfortable in the water than on land. He splashed the other boys with water continuously. Of all the water games they played, Soobin was the best at every single one. It was as if he had some secret technique that allowed him to make bigger splashes than the rest. At some point, the younger Soobin stared off into the water and began to hum quietly.

“What are you doing?” A younger Kai asked him.

“Trying to charm the dolphins…” Younger Soobin said.

 _Charm dolphins? What could that mean?_ The only logical explanation for this could be that it's just the younger Soobin letting his imagination run wild, believing he could “charm” dolphins, whatever that meant.

“You've never charmed ocean animals before but I bet you could!” Young Yeonjun said. The other boys have now gathered around him, all silent, watching him intensely. Young Soobin kept humming, completely unfazed by all the eyes on him. He kept his unwavering stare on the surface of the water, as it began to ripple slightly, and sure enough, a small dorsal fin rose above the surface, soon followed by the rest of the baby dolphin. Young Soobin intensified his humming and the dolphin began creeping closer. By now, all the young boys were cheering him on, watching excitedly as the dolphin swam ever closer. For a split second, young Soobin glanced back at the boys and smiled. He didn't think it would be enough to break his concentration but when he turned back, the dolphin was already swimming away. A wave of disappointment washed over him as he tried to call it back, to no avail. Young Beomgyu patted his back.

“You'll get it next time. C'mon let's play more!” And with that, the crowd of boys dispersed, leaving Soobin to his thoughts. The dolphin was taking its sweet time to go back to wherever it came from. Maybe he could still catch up to it…

Making up his mind, the younger Soobin began walking farther into the water. As the present Soobin watched this occur, he began to feel more and more panicked. _I can't swim! Am I about to drown?_ The younger Soobin, however, pressed on, keeping a steady pace, determined not to lose the dolphin. The dolphin suddenly went under, but that didn't stop the boy. He held his breath and followed the dolphin under the water. If he squinted really hard, he could still make out the dolphin. But he was not made for water, and although he was faster than most underwater, his inability to swim got the better of him and slowed him down significantly. Soon the dolphin evaded him and vanished before his eyes. Saddened by his defeat, he decided to head back and try another day. He turned around and completely blanked. His sense of direction was non-existent in the unchanging blue of the water. That's when Young Soobin began to panic. He had absolutely no idea how to get back to the surface. Tilting his head back, he realized he couldn't even see the sun anymore. Had he really gone that deep or was it already nighttime? With incredible willpower, he tried to swim upwards and with great surprise he was able to do it somewhat. It helped that he was basically at home in the water and was faster at picking things up than most people his age. He was able to swim for a considerable amount of time but the cold was getting to him. His movements slowed and he began to panic again. He was at the end of his oxygen and unconsciously he opened his mouth to call for help. The water rushed into his lungs and his vision began to blur. _Has nobody noticed that I'm gone? Why aren't they looking for me?_ His panic increased as he began to sink back towards the surface. _No, no I can't die like this! Where are my friends? Where is my hyung?_ _Where is my mom?_ His chest was burning and he had lost feeling in his entire body. Unable to move, he closed his eyes, hoping that someone would find him before it was too late. But deep inside he knew he was already as good as gone. Reflexively, he took another deep breath, his vision clouding more, as the water filled his lungs. Maybe it was the fact that he was slowly dying, but just before he passed out, he could have sworn he saw the evasive dolphin pass his line of vision. He reached out towards it and it stopped for a second, locking eyes with him. Then his vision finally faded to black.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Soobin wakes up with a gasp, his eyes flying open. His eyes dart around crazily, trying to make sense of his situation. _No water, no dolphins, just a dream…_

Breathing heavily, he lets his head fall back against his pillow and closes his eyes. He vaguely registers the fact that he's covered in sweat and shaking uncontrollably, but before he can dwell on that, he hears a soft voice call out.

“H-hyung?” Beomgyu whispers. Soobin opens his eyes slowly and tries to focus on Beomgyu. His eyes finally adjust and he sees the frightened look on Beomgyu's face. It takes him a few seconds to realize that the rest of his brothers are surrounding him as well, all looking equally as scared and worried as Beomgyu.

“Soobin…” This comes from Yeonjun, who's sitting closest to him. “You were crying in your sleep… I tried to wake you up, but you grabbed my hand and wouldn't let go…” Soobin glances down to see that he _still_ hasn't let go.

“How long...have you been awake?” Soobin whispers.

“I've been awake for maybe 10 minutes and the others woke up after me. I heard you breathing weirdly...like you were drowning or something.” 

At that word, Soobin gulps and his heart rate begins to pick up again. He shuts his eyes and turns his head away from the boys, squeezing the life out of Yeonjun's hand.

“Hey, hey don't worry, you're ok, you're ok…” Yeonjun says, in a rush. “Tae, get him some water.” 

Taehyun goes to do just that, but before he can, Soobin sits up suddenly and grabs his arm to stop him. He shakes his head quickly.

“No water…” He says. Soobin doesn't think he can even stand to see it at this point. He also realizes he feels better sitting up. Lying down makes it feel like he's drowning again.

“Hyung… Do you wanna talk about it?” Kai asks, cautiously. Under normal circumstances, Soobin would probably have said no, but this time he thinks he should share. After all, he knew for a fact that it must be a memory. And since everyone had lost their memories, he thought they had a right to know.

So he nodded, shakily, and began to recount the story. The boys seemed just as confused about what “charming” could mean. They way they stared at him while he told the story was so similar to the way they had in the memory, that he began to shake again. The boys however comforted him whenever this happened, so he would be able to continue his story. By the time he finished the story, he was squeezing Yeonjun's hand so hard, that the boy looked like he wanted to pull away. However, for the sake of Soobin's sanity, he stayed put.

“Ok, so…” Kai spoke up. “Can we all agree that it's a memory?”

The other boys nodded.

“I never could have remembered it myself but as he was telling it, it almost felt like deja Vu…” Taehyun says.

“I wonder what it could mean… Do you remember if we had our bracelets in the dream?” Beomgyu asks. Soobin shakes his head wearily. His head is slowly beginning to pound again and he really just wants to stop talking about all of this. Yeonjun seems to sense this and instantly speaks up.

“Maybe we can decode it tomorrow. I don't think Soobin's feeling ok right now.” He says. At this, Kai creeps forward and lays a hand on Soobin's forehead. His brow creases in worry.

“He's running a fever. I don't think you should go to school tomorrow, Soobin hyung.” Kai says. Soobin nods sleepily.

“Maybe you guys should stay back too. I've basically ruined your sleep. You'll all be tired tomorrow…” He mutters. 

“Don't worry about us, Binnie. Just try and get some rest, we'll be fine.” Yeonjun says, slowly guiding Soobin back onto the mattress.

Ok…” He whispers, his eyes slowly sliding shut. The boys all fall silent and only speak again once they're completely sure he's gone back to sleep.

“Do you think we should tell him?” Kai whispers.

“Tell him what? You mean, how we really woke up?” Beomgyu asks.

“Nope, I think that's a bad idea. He already has a lot on his mind. Maybe tomorrow or when he gets better.” Taehyun says. The other two maknaes nod and go about trying to go back to sleep. Yeonjun stares at his bracelet for a second.

“Am I the only one who still can't believe it?” He asks.

“I thought it was strange too. Beomgyu, you saw it first, right?” Taehyun asks.

Beomgyu nods, slowly.

“I woke up cuz it was suddenly so bright. When I opened my eyes, all of our bracelets were glowing…” 

“And they stopped as soon as he woke up…” Yeonjun whispers. Kai shakes his head in disbelief.

“Something is definitely different about us…” He says.

“Ya…” Taehyun says, sighing. “Well… Let's try to sleep I guess.”

But none of the boys got a proper wink of sleep after that...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> But how funny would it be if I decided to call this chapter THE DREAM CHAPTER??🤣🤣🤣  
> Ok I'll leave now
> 
> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	7. Our Dreams Become Reality (And so do Our Nightmares)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whenever Soobin hums, just imagine the tune of Magic Island.

“Beomie, are the boys ready?” Beomgyu's mother asks. Beomgyu turns his head towards his mother.

“Almost mom!” He says back. 

“Ok, tell them to hurry a bit. Me and the girls have to go back to the bakery.” She says. Beomgyu nods and goes back to Yeonjun's room where they're all getting ready. 

“Hey guys, y'all need to hurry. The moms need to go too.” Beomgyu says, lifting his backpack up from the floor. He winces a little when his wrist twinges painfully. A hand suddenly reaches out and grabs the backpack from him. Beomgyu looks up to see Taehyun holding the backpack and gesturing for him to turn around. Beomgyu smiles as he does so.

“I told you to take it easy on your wrist, didn't I?” Taehyun chides, as he puts the backpack around Beomgyu's shoulders.

“Ya, I'll be careful next time. Thanks buddy.” Beomgyu says, turning to face him.

“No problem, Hyung.” Taehyun replies, patting his shoulder and grabbing his own backpack.

“Let's go guys!” Yeonjun says, walking out the door and gesturing for them to follow him. The other boys follow him out and walk to the front door. When they pass through the den, Beomgyu rests his gaze on Soobin's sleeping form lying on the mattress. He sighs, his heart aching for his hyung. He can't help but think that Soobin looks worse than he did at night. He's worryingly pale and visibly sweating. Beomgyu feels a hand on his shoulder and turns around in surprise. It's Yeonjun, smiling down at him sadly.

“He'll be ok.” Yeonjun says, comfortingly. Beomgyu nods, returning the smile and walks out with the rest of the boys. Just as they're all nearing the car, he gasps suddenly, realizing he doesn't have his bracelet on.

“Mom, I'm so sorry, I forgot my bracelet. Can I…” His mom smiles.

“It's ok, we still have a few minutes to spare. We'll wait in the car.” She says. Beomgyu smiles gratefully.

“Thanks Mom.” She nods and he runs back into the house. Yeonjun's mom sees him and frowns confusedly.

“Forget something?” She asks. 

“Ya, my bracelet.” He tells her. She nods in understanding.

“Ah, I see. Would you like me to help you find it?” She asks. Beomgyu shakes his head smiling.

“No it's ok. I'm pretty sure I left it on Yeonjun's bookshelf.” She nods and goes back to her business. Beomgyu runs into Yeonjun's room and grabs his bracelet from where he left it. Walking back out, he finds himself struggling to put it on due to his injured wrist. Just as he's about to give up and have one of the boys help him in the car, he hears a small voice call his name.

“Beomie?” 

Beomgyu turns around, surprised, realizing he's back in the den. Looking down, he sees Soobin staring up at him, sleepily. Beomgyu immediately rushes over to him and settles down on his knees in front of him.

“Yes, Hyung?” He says, gently.

“You guys are leaving for school…?” Soobin asks. Beomgyu nods. 

“Oh… Well, bye then… Have fun.” Soobin says, smiling tiredly. 

“I will, hyung. Take care, ok?” beomgyu replies, patting his hyungs shoulder.

“Mhm…” Soobin mutters, sleepily. “Hey, give me that…” He says, suddenly, pointing to the bracelet in Beomgyu's hand. Beomgyu immediately tries to object.

“Oh, no it's ok, Hyung! I can-” 

“Shh, it's ok, Hyung will help you.” Soobin says, a small smile on his face, as he takes the bracelet from him and fastens it around his wrist.

“There you go. You should get going now, Beomie.” Soobin says. Beomgyu can tell that he's struggling to keep his eyes open at this point. He smiles endearingly at his hyung.

“Thanks hyung. Go back to sleep now.”

“Mhm…” Soobin says, his eyes already sliding shut. With one last smile for his hyung, Beomgyu rises to his feet and rushes out the door.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Beomgyu knew that not having his hyung around would make him sad, but he didn't realize the extent to which it would ruin his mood. Soobin had the first four classes of the day with him, but now without him, he was all alone. It was really taking a toll on him. He felt like he was all alone again, and it was making him feel overwhelmed. However, he knew he could do nothing about it, and stayed put.  _ I can do this _ , he told himself.

By the time 3rd period rolled in, he realized he was very much wrong. He absolutely could not do this. He decides that he should probably take a break. As soon as the teacher finishes taking attendance, he raises his hand with alarming speed. The teacher nods at him and he asks to go to the bathroom. She nods, dismissively.

He rushes out and walks to the bathroom, his thoughts running wild. He realizes that if he doesn't see one of his friends right now, he's going to get too overwhelmed and not be able to function. By the time, he gets to the bathroom, he decides to ask Kai to come see him with the excuse that his wrist is hurting again. He leans against the wall and whips out his phone. Starting a private chat with Kai, he quickly types out:

**Me**

Hey Kai, can u meet me at the bathroom for a sec?

The reply comes almost instantly.

**Baby Kai💛**

Sure, in a bit. Is everything ok?

**Me**

Ya, my wrist is just hurting a little.

**Baby Kai💛**

Oh, poor u😞

Hang in there buddy! I'll be right there!

Beomgyu sighs, putting his phone away. He already begins to feel slightly better, knowing that Kai is on the way. He felt kinda bad for lying to him and making him worry, but his desperation to not be alone anymore won out. He hears the door open and smiles slightly. He walks over to the door.

“Hey, Ka-” 

He cuts off suddenly when he comes face to face with Jaemin. Even Jaemin freezes, staring at him in alarm. A million things are running through Beomgyu's head. One voice in his head is telling him to run, but the other one is telling him to stay put. Beomgyu frowns at the boy, deciding he's not going to try and escape. He knows that it's probably not the best idea, but he'd rather not seem weak in front of the older boy. Beomgyu turns around and walks back to where he was waiting for Kai. He doesn't dare make eye contact with the boy, pretending not to care. Despite not wanting to admit it, Beomgyu is super nervous, but he knows that Kai should be here any second and that the two of them could possibly win against him. 

Beomgyu's heart rate picks up, slightly, when Jaemin slowly comes inside and walks toward him. He keeps his eyes firmly on his phone screen, scrolling pointlessly. He jumps a little when Jaemin finally speaks.

“I noticed your scary friend isn't here today.” Jaemin says.

Beomgyu frowns when he realizes that he can't quite place Jaemin's tone. He doesn't sound like he's trying to be mean or condescending. But he doesn't exactly sound like he's trying to be nice or concerned either. He just sounds neutral. Still, Beomgyu isn't about to play nice.

“And what about it? It's none of your business. And I really didn't think that I'd have to spell this out for you, but stay away from me.” Beomgyu says, lifting his head and glaring at the boy. He's a little shocked at what he sees. Jaemin is staring at the floor, his arms wrapped around himself. Beomgyu almost laughs. If any outsider were to see this they'd think that Beomgyu was the bully, not the other way around. Jaemin begins to walk away, but just before he leaves he mutters something that Beomgyu almost doesn't catch.

“I hope your wrist gets better…” Then he leaves without another word.

Saying that he was shocked would be an understatement. He didn't even think that Jaemin had noticed.  _ Still, it doesn't make up for everything else. _ Before Beomgyu can think about it anymore, the door flies open and Kai rushes in.

“Hyung! I just saw Jaemin come out! Are you ok? He didn't do anything to you, did he?” He says, in a rush. Beomgyu shakes his head slowly.

“No, he didn't... Don't worry about it.” Beomgyu says. Kai frowns in confusion.

“Really? That doesn't seem like him…”

“I know. It doesn't. He was acting different today.”

“Wow, weird… Anyways, you said your wrist was hurting?”

Beomgyu blushes slightly in embarrassment.

“Uh, yeah, about that… I kinda lied to you… I was just kinda lonely and used that as an excuse to get you here…” He says, staring at the floor. Kai laughs.

“Oh, hyung you're so cute! You could have just told me you felt lonely! I would have come anyway!” 

Beomgyu smiles, happy that Kai wasn't upset with him for lying.

“Hyung, you can sneak into my art class. Taehyun hyung is there, too”

Beomgyu is about to nod to the suggestion, but something occurs to him.

“Doesn't Yeonjun Hyung have this class alone, too?”

“Oh yeah! He has gym right now! We should all sneak into his class instead!”

“Yeah, wouldn't that be so much easier?”

And so the two boys first stopped by Kai's art class to grab Tae and then the three of them all snuck into Yeonjun's gym class. The older boy was ecstatic upon seeing them, admitting that he too had been feeling lonely. The four boys played together, the sadness of their missing brother becoming a little easier to handle.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Soobin, baby, have you brushed your teeth?”

Soobin grinned joyfully. He never got enough of his mother's babying, despite being in his teenage years.

“Yes Mom, I have.” He says, walking over to where she stood in the kitchen.

“Well, then sit down. I made pancakes for you.” She says, smiling happily, bringing her own plate over to the table. He sat down next to her.

“Thanks so much Mom.”

“No problem, baby. I'll get you some medicine when you've eaten.”

Soobin nods and digs in. As he eats, he notices how silent the house seems.

“Did the rest of the moms leave already?” He asks.

“Yes they did. They said not to worry and that they'll take of everything and that I should take care of my son.” She says, smiling.

“That was real nice of them.” Soobin remarks. She nods, smiling.

“It was, wasn't it?” She frowns a little. “But I think I might have to go in a bit. There's just so much to get done and we want to have the grand opening on the weekend. Do you wanna come with me or would you rather stay home?” 

Soobin wrinkles his nose, thinking hard.

“Hmmm, I think I'll just stay home. I'll probably take a nap or something. I just don't feel like leaving the house today…”

His mother hums in agreement. Her expression turns contemplative for a second.

“You know… Yeonjun was telling me you had a nightmare last night… Do you think you could tell me what it was about?”

Soobin fidgets uncomfortably.

“Ummmm, is it ok if I don't go into too much detail?” He asks. His mother nods.

“Of course. Whatever you're comfortable with.”

“Well, we were all basically at the beach and I nearly drowned trying to follow a dolphin. That's the gist of it. Does that sound familiar at all?” soobin asks looking up. His mother has the strangest look on her face, almost as if she's terrified and that she  _ does _ find it familiar.

“Mom?”

“Hm? Oh! No, it doesn't sound familiar at all.” she smiles hesitantly.

After that, his mother seems very distracted throughout the rest of their conversation. He decides not to question it but can't help but feel alarmed at how disturbed she looks. At long last, his mother leaves the house, with a rushed “Love you”, and Soobin is left alone in the house.

He walks around the vast house for most of the time, exploring the mansion. There's something almost thrilling about how he's the only one in the big house. He finds so many interesting rooms and can't help but gape in awe at the sheer size of it all. He finds that his favorite thing to do is to climb up to the top floor and look down at the rest of the house from the loft.

After about an hour of roaming around, he finds himself in Yeonjun's room, which is also alarmingly huge. His bed, bookshelf and bureau are all against one wall, and a TV is mounted on the wall opposite them. The farthest wall is covered with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking both the city and the sky. Three couches are set up in front of these windows so someone could just sit and watch the sunset.

Soobin walks over to the couches and notices a little photo album on one of the little tables next to the couches. He walks over to it and lets his fingers brush over the surface. He knows he probably shouldn't open it, but he feels a strange pull towards it. Picking it up, he begins to flip through it slowly, smiling at all of Yeonjun's baby pics. Soon he finds pictures of all five of them in various locations. Them at school, them at the playground, them out camping. He slowly turns the page and finds one that looks strikingly familiar. The five of them are at a beach, standing in the water, their hands raised in midair, as the sun reflects off of their bracelets.

Soobin suddenly feels a sharp pain stab through his skull. He cries out in pain, using both hands to cradle his head, causing the album to fall in the process. He stumbles forward and falls to his knees. 

And just like before, the pain vanishes as quickly as it had come. Breathing harshly, Soobin gets to his feet, somewhat unsteadily. He puts the album away and leaves the room quickly after that. He thinks that it can't possibly be a coincidence, but he's in no condition to dwell on it, so he writes it off as his fever acting up.

He somehow finds himself on the patio outside, staring out at the immense backyard. He thinks back to his dream and how he was able to “charm” the dolphin somewhat. Looking around he catches sight of a squirrel slowly making its way to a tree. He makes a split second decision and decides to try charming the animal. Thinking hard, he recalls the tune he had been humming and begins to replicate it. After a few seconds, he begins feeling silly and almost stops, but suddenly the squirrel stops moving. Soobin's eyes widen as he continues humming. The squirrel turns it's head towards him and slowly, but surely, makes its way towards him. It stops in front of him and stares at his face, as if awaiting its commands. Soobin stops, shocked, and as soon as he does, the squirrel turns away from him and darts away back to the tree. Letting out a surprised gasp, Soobin decides to try again. He spots a bird sitting on the grass not too far away. He focuses all his attention on the bird and begins to hum again. Sure enough, the bird looks at him and flies over to settle in front of him and stare at him the same way the squirrel had.

Soobin stops again, letting go a breath he didn't know he'd been holding. The bird flies away, undisturbed. Soobin sighs, and sits down on a chair, his head in his hands.  _ This is insane… I have to show the boys… _

He had failed to notice that his bracelet had been glowing.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

By lunch time, all the boys were considerably happier. Taehyun especially was excited to spend lunch with his friends for the first time, since he had been absent from yesterday's session. The boys talked about everything under the sun, but eventually moved on to a more pressing topic.

“I'm thinking we should tell Soobin what happened yesterday. If we're going to decipher his dream, we need to tell him about the bracelets first.” Yeonjun states. The other boys nod in agreement.

“So we know that it happens whenever he remembers something. Now we need to keep track of when it happens again.” Kai says.

“Are we absolutely sure that Soobin has magic powers?” Beomgyu says, grimacing a little at how strange it sounded.

“I mean, it seems like the only logical explanation.” Kai says.

“Correction. There  _ is  _ no logical explanation. That's why we're writing it off as magic.” Taehyun counters. Yeonjun shakes his head at that.

“I think it makes sense. I mean, we can't  _ all _ have imagined what happened last night.” Yeonjun points out.

“He has a valid point…” Beomgyu mutters.

“And get this. I don't think Soobin is the only one with powers…” Yeonjun says.

“What?” Kai says, looking up in shock. “You think we're magical too?” 

“Yes” Yeonjun says, nodding. “Because  _ all _ of our bracelets were glowing.”

“I think that makes sense.” Taehyun says.

And suddenly, as if spurred by their conversation, all of their bracelets began to glow simultaneously.

“Oh my God…” Yeonjun says, eyes blown wide. “Did...he remember something?” 

The other boys exchange worried glances, knowing that they would just have to wait until school ended to find out…

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

By the end of the day, the boys are thoroughly unnerved. They wait on the roof for their moms, but when they don't come right away, the boys almost decide to leave on their own. However, just as they're about to, Yeonjun gets a text from his mom to do just that.

**Momma bear💙**

Hey Yeonie! We're going to be home late. You and the boys can go back on ur own, ok?

Also the boys and their moms will be staying for the rest of the week until the grand opening😊

**Me**

Ok, mom will do! Oh rly? that sounds fun😊😊

Yeonjun passes the information to the other boys and they leave quickly. They get back home in record time and rush through the door.

“Soobin?” Yeonjun calls out, dropping his backpack on the floor and searching the house.

“Oh my gosh, it's so quiet.” Kai notes.

“Is he even in the house?” Beomgyu asks.

“Oh! I see him! He's outside!” Taehyun calls. With that he rushes out the door with the rest of the boys.

“Hyung!” He calls, but before he can say anything else, Soobin holds up a hand, gesturing for quiet. The boys frown in confusion at the scene in front of them. Soobin is sitting on one of the patio chairs, his eyes locked on a black cat in front of him, humming a strange tune. The cat also stares him down, fixing his blue and green eyes firmly on Soobin's. He keeps humming for a few more seconds before stopping suddenly. The cat leaves just as he stops. Soobin sighs heavily, leaning back against the chair. He smiles at the boys.

“So… Apparently I  _ can _ charm animals.”

“Wow, hyung that's amazing!” Kai says, leaping towards his hyung and giving him a big hug. 

“Wait. Around what time did you first try this?” Yeonjun asks.

“Like around one? Why?” Soobin asks.

“Ah that makes sense. That's when the bracelets started glowing…” Taehyun says. Soobin frowns in confusion. The boys decide now is a good time to explain the events of last night. It takes him awhile to understand but Soobin doesn't seem all too surprised, given the fact that he just did magic on his own.

“Ok so this happens whenever I remember something and when I first used my power?” 

“Yup, pretty much. So now we're anticipating this when you remember something else and if we also happen to have powers, when we first use them. We don't know yet if we might be able to remember things as well or if it's just you, but we'll figure it out as we go.” Taehyun says.

“Anyways, tell us more about your power. Can you do anything else?” Kai asks. Soobin shakes his head.

“Nope. For now I can just get small animals to come towards me. And I can only do one at a time.”

“Oh my God, you know what would be cool? If you could charm humans!” Kai says. Soobin smiles tiredly. He looks like he really just wants to sleep, but he plays along with Kai's request anyways.

“I could try… Any volunteers?” Soobin asks. Beomgyu leaps into the air, his hand raised.

“Me, me!” Beomgyu shrieks. Soobin smiles and gestures for him to come closer. Focusing all his attention on the smiling boy, Soobin begins to hum. Beomgyu doesn't feel any different, but after a while something strange begins to happen. The humming seemingly gets louder, although Beomgyu is pretty sure Soobin is humming at the same volume as before. The noise gets so loud that it begins to grate on his ears, making him wince in pain. Then he feels immense pressure inside his skull. Beomgyu doesn't say anything and just lets Soobin continue his humming. It was a few seconds later however that the pressure and noise became too much to bear. Beomgyu begins to panic and opens his mouth to try and tell Soobin to stop, but just as he's about to, the pain suddenly becomes too much. Before he can do anything his vision blurs and he begins falling backwards. Thankfully, the darkness swallows him before he hits the ground.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do love my cliffhangers🙂💜  
> Also I'm probably going to be taking a two week break so hang on to that cliff you guys!😊  
> Much love and I'll see u all soon!
> 
> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	8. My Heart is in Mayhem

Time seems to slow as Beomgyu's legs suddenly crumple beneath him, his eyes rolling to the back of his head.

“BEOMGYU!!” Kai shrieks in alarm. He manages to dive to the floor just in time to catch Beomgyu before he hits the floor. Soobin's eyes fly open in alarm as he stops humming abruptly. 

“Oh my God! Beomgyu!” He screams, falling to his knees next to Kai, his eyes blown wide in panic. He continuously screams his name but no response comes back. Yeonjun and Taehyun stand there in shock. Yeonjun decides to take control of the situation.

“Taehyun, get his mom on the phone. Now!” He says, sternly. Taehyun nods quickly and rushes back inside.

“Kai, take him inside.” Kai lifts Beomgyu's limp body in his arms and rushes inside. Soobin stays where he is on the floor, tears flowing down his cheeks, as he continues to say Beomgyu's name. When he realizes that Beomgyu is no longer there, he stands up quickly to follow Kai inside, but a wave of dizziness hits him out of nowhere. He stumbles slightly and nearly falls to the floor, but Yeonjun manages to steady him.

“Soobin, don't worry I've got you. I don't think you should try to move right now.” Yeonjun says. Yeonjun had already thought that Soobin had looked drained from overuse of his power. That on top of already running a fever was a bad combination. Soobin shakes his head vigorously.

“No, no, I have to see Beomie!” He tries to shove Yeonjun off of him, but to no avail. Yeonjun drags him inside and dumps him on the sofa, unceremoniously. Yeonjun is just about to leave Soobin there and go tend to Beomgyu, when he feels a shaking hand grab on to his wrist. He turns around to see Soobin staring up at him with watery eyes.

“I-i didn't mean to, hyung. I really didn't mean to…” Soobin stutters. Yeonjun sighs and settles down on his knees in front of the crying boy.

“I know you didn't mean to. It's not your fault ok? You couldn't have known. No one is at fault here, ok?” Yeonjun says, trying to console the boy. Soobin nods shakily.

“Will Beomie be ok…?” Soobin whispers.

“Of course, Binnie. Everything is going to be just fine.” Yeonjun says. He feels bad because there's obviously no weight behind his words, but he really doesn't want to upset the boy more than he already is. He pats his head comfortingly, before leaving him alone and running over to his bedroom, where Kai is with Beomgyu.

“How is he?” He asks, as soon as he's inside.

“Still out cold. And I mean literally. He's freezing!” Kai says. Yeonjun frowns worriedly as he makes his way to the bed. He reaches out and touches Beomgyu's hand. He shivers upon making contact with his skin. He worriedly stares at him for a few seconds. He panics for a second when he doesn't see him breath for a bit, but relaxes when he's able to discern the small movements of his chest. 

Had the boys not been there to witness what had just happened they would have thought Beomgyu was sleeping peacefully. Of course, since they had, they were absolutely terrified and nervous about what would happen next.

“HYUNG!”

Yeonjun jumps at the terrified shriek coming from the den. It takes him awhile to place the voice as Taehyun's. He immediately rushes out the door, yelling at Kai to stay put. They can't afford to leave Beomgyu alone right now.

Yeonjun comes to a screeching halt in the hallway, nearly crashing into Taehyun, who was running in the opposite direction, presumably to get help. Yeonjun grips Taehyun's shoulders as he nearly falls forward in his rush.

“Taehyun! What's wrong?” Yeonjun says, locking his gaze on Taehyun's wide eyes.

“Something's wrong with Soobin hyung!” He says, taking Yeonjun's hand and dragging him into the den. As soon as they're there, Yeonjun’s eyes instantly seek out Soobin. He finds him on the floor on his knees, a hand clawing at his throat, as if he can't breathe. It takes him a few seconds to realize that's exactly what's happening. Both boys rush over to him, trying to figure out what's wrong.

“Soobin! Can you try and tell me what's wrong?” Yeonjun asks, a vice like grip on the boy's shoulders. Soobin shakes his head sharply, as he continues to choke on nothing. His entire body is covered in sweat, his hands shaking, as he desperately tries to suck in a proper breath.

“Hyung! Look! His bracelet!” Taehyun yells, pointing at the bracelet on Soobin's wrist. It's glowing brighter than ever before and for some reason, that's makes Yeonjun furious. These damn bracelets, he fumes.

Without a second thought, he latches on to the bracelet and yanks it off of the boy's wrist, throwing it to the floor. Soobin gasps, suddenly, as whatever had been obstructing his breathing vanishes suddenly. He coughs harshly for a few seconds before all the strength leaves his body abruptly. His eyelids flutter shut, his body going limp in Taehyun's arms. 

Yeonjun lets go a shaky breath and puts his head in his hands.

“Oh my God, what the heck is happening…” He mutters, completely overwhelmed with the series of unpredictable events.

“What do we do now, hyung?” Taehyun asks, in a small voice, his gaze locked on Soobin's prone body. Sighing Yeonjun stands, gathering Soobin up in his arms.

“Follow me, Tae.” He says, wearily. Taehyun follows him to his room without another word.

When they walk into the room, Kai stands from the bed, a look of shock on his face. Before he can question what happened, Yeonjun fills him in quickly, trying to ignore the way Kai's eyes fill with tears.

His eyes follow him as he walks around the bed and places Soobin down next to Beomgyu. Yeonjun sighs for what feels like the hundredth time that day, and slumps down on the spacious bed. 

“Ok….” He says, slowly looking up at the two maknaes. “First things first, we are not going to panic, ok? I know that it's probably too late for that, but we're going to try and stay calm, ok? Can you do that for me?” Both boys nod, not quite making eye contact with anyone.

“Ok, secondly… Taehyun did you call Beomgyu's mom?”

“Yes, they're on the way. They should be here any minute.” Taehyun responds quickly. 

“Alright that's good. What did you tell her?”

“Well...I told her that he fell off the stairs and hit his head…” Taehyun says, looking slightly apologetic that he couldn't come up with anything better.

“Ok, good enough. Now when they get here, we can say that Soobin had an asthma attack.”

“Does he even have a history with asthma though?” Kai asks, a nervousness in his voice. “Wouldn't that sound suspicious? Especially to his mom, who probably knows if he has or not.”

“Yes, you're right, but the problem is, we really don't know what happened to him, and this is the closest explanation I can come up with right now. If you have any brilliant ideas, Kai, then please do tell.” 

He hadn't meant to sound snappy, he really hadn't. But the stress was finally catching up to him. He didn't want to admit it, but he knew he was starting to panic. The first time that the five of them had been together, he had felt a feeling of indescribable bliss and happiness, but since then, it seemed that strange things kept happening to them. He wasn't sure what to make of them, but he knew that he would do anything to get them to stop. He just wanted the five of them to finally be together without having to worry about these things.

“I'm sorry, hyung…” Kai's quiet voice says. Those 3 simple words make a wave of guilt wash over Yeonjun. He groans internally as he raises his head to look up at Kai. The boy won't make eye contact with him and that just makes Yeonjun feel worse.

“No, I'm sorry, Kai… Come here…” He says, leaning forward to wrap the maknae up in his arms. He glances over at Taehyun and gestures for him to join.

“You too, Tae…” He whispers. Taehyun obediently crawls over and clings to Yeonjun's arm. Yeonjun rocks the both of them back and forth, desperately trying to swallow past the lump in his throat, so he can say something.

“I’m so sorry, guys… I'm really bad at being a hyung… I'm trying not to panic, but I'm not sure if I can do this alone…” He whispers, tightening his grip on the boys.

“Hyung…” Taehyun says, looks up at Yeonjun. “You're doing everything you can… And no one said you had to do it alone… We're here for you… We can get through this together.”

Yeonjun feels Kai nod against his shoulder, agreeing with Taehyun's words. He smiles, swallowing thickly.

“Thanks guys… So much”

“That's what we're here for, Hyung.” Kai says, breaking away from the hug with a smile.

“Now I sense that the moms will be here any-”

As if on cue, they hear the front door slam open.

“Boys, we're here! Boys!?” 

“It's going to be a long night…” Yeonjun says, sighing.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Yeonjun's eyes dart around nervously, his foot tapping impatiently on the floor. He continuously glances up at the clock, as more and more seconds tick by. It's almost 5:30 now, about an hour and a half since they had arrived at the hospital. They still had yet to hear back from the doctors. Coincidentally, one of the doctors turned out to be Kai's dad. They had only gotten a glimpse of him running frantically between rooms, a worried expression on his face. They wouldn't even have known he was Kai's dad, had the man not greeted his son and wife quickly, before running off again.

A hand suddenly grips Yeonjun's shoulder, jolting him from his thoughts. He jumps slightly at the unexpected touch, a small gasp leaving him. He whirls around coming face to face with Taehyun.

“Relax, hyung. It's just me.” He says, whispering, not wanting to break the silence. Yeonjun nods quickly, turning back towards the clock, ignoring Taehyun's frown. Taehyun tugs on his shoulder again.

“Hyung, I can see you stressing out. Don't worry, they're in good hands.”

“I know, I know. I just… Need to see them…” Yeonjun says, still not turning around to face him.

“I know… I'm scared too, hyung. But as kids, there's nothing we can do right now…”

“Why are you always right?” Yeonjun says, sighing, finally looking at Taehyun, when he realizes that staring at the clock only makes time move slower. Taehyun smiles hesitantly, and that's enough to make Yeonjun crack a small smile as well.

“Guys…” Kai says, voice tense. Both boys turn around to see a doctor speaking to both Soobin and Beomgyu's mothers. All three boys get up at the speed of lightning, only making it to the others in time to catch the last part.

“...For now, we don't know when they'll wake up, but their vitals are stable so there shouldn't be anything to worry about. We'll let you know if anything changes.” 

“Thank you so much, doctor.” Soobin's mom says, bowing to the doctor as he leaves. Beomgyu's mother does the same.

As soon as the doctors leaves, both women collapse into their chairs, not saying a word. The other moms say comforting words to them while also trying to hug their own children, who had to witness everything go down. Of course, the mothers didn't know the real version of the story, which was much worse than they were led to believe.

“Mom, when can we visit them?” Taehyun asks his mom.

“The doctor said we could come back tomorrow, but we don't know if they'll be awake.” His mom answers.

Taehyun nods and wiggles out of his mother's grasp, going back to where he sat before, the other boys following suit.

“I guess it'll just be the three of us tomorrow….” Kai says, sighing.

“I don't know what I'll do if things like this keep happening…” Yeonjun says, with a sigh.

“Well, it's like what I said before, hyung…” Taehyun says.

“There's nothing we can do?” He asks, turning to look at him. Taehyun nods, his face blank as he echoes the hopeless words.

“There's nothing we can do….”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What on Earth happened to Soobin and Beomgyu?🤔  
> It'll all make sense later guys😊  
> But then again it could also get more confusing🙂😈  
> Tell me ur theories!
> 
> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	9. Different This Time (Cuz We're the Same)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sry for the long wait guys😣 I was on vacay lol  
> Here's a longish chapter for y'all💜

The first thing Soobin notices is the absence of his bracelet. Before even noticing the harsh lights of the hospital or the constricting oxygen mask, he feels the emptiness around his wrist. His eyes fly open and he immediately regrets it, shutting them tight once again as the blinding light pierces his irises.

“Binnie? Are you awake…?” 

He opens his eyes again, slowly this time, when he registers his mother's voice. Turning his head slightly, he sees her sitting on a chair next to him, leaning forward, her eyes wide. She looks like she hasn't slept in days. Soobin blinks slowly before observing the rest of his surroundings. The room is quite spacious and as he looks around, he realizes that he's sharing a room with someone else. His eyes widen as he immediately recognizes the sleeping body in the bed on the other side of the room.

“Beomgyu…” He mutters, his voice sounding muffled because of the mask. He lifts his upper body with his arms, set on getting out of bed and making sure Beomgyu was alright, but his mother wasn't having it. She immediately stood up, gripping his shoulders and gently, but firmly, pushing him back down on the bed.

“You're in no condition to move, sweetheart.” She whispers. Soobin is much too drained to argue, so he obediently stays put. His mother fixes his blanket then sits back down, a worried expression on her face.

“How are you feeling, baby?” She asks. Soobin sighs, closing his eyes and thinking about the question a little.

“Just really, really tired, I guess. My head hurts kinda and so does my throat. It's kinda hard to breath….” He trails off, trying to think of what else seemed off.

“Ya, I think that's basically it… What happened, though?”

His mom immediately frowns, her gaze trained on her son. Soobin feels uncomfortable under her stare. She's staring at him as if trying to catch him in a lie.

“You don't remember?” She asks, a slight disbelieving undertone in her voice. Soobin frowns slightly. He remembers _something_ , but it really doesn't make sense in his head.

“Um, I remember a little? Everything's just a little fuzzy in my head right now…” He says, uncertainly.

“Well….” His mother draws out the word, still not breaking her intimidating stare.

“The boys told me you had an...asthma attack.” 

Soobin's eyes widen suddenly as everything from earlier came rushing back into his memory. The strange new power, the “charming”, what had happened with Beomgyu… And what happened after. He frowned as the memory replayed in his head. It was still a little fuzzy but he remembered crying so hard he felt like he couldn't breathe, and the next second he really couldn't. It was as if something had completely blocked his airway. He vaguely remembered his bracelet glowing, and after that he couldn't remember anything.

“Is that true?” His mother's voice suddenly jolts him from his thoughts.

“Huh? Oh- yeah, pretty much. Ya that's what happened…” He says, nodding quickly and averting his eyes. His mom frowns for a few seconds before finally breaking the stare.

“Mom, where's my bracelet?” Soobin asks, suddenly, the bracelet the only thing on his mind.

“Oh, here.” She says, reaching into her purse and gently pulling Soobin's hand forward to put the bracelet around his wrist. He sighs, and watches the bracelet reflect the bright lights.

“The doctors told me to get them when you wake up, but I'm sure they'll be here any second.” His mom says. The boy nods, already feeling sleepy again. He closes his eyes, trying to expel thoughts of the terrifying events from his head. He vaguely wonders what the others are up to as he succumbs to the darkness of sleep.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“Um, Kai...are you ok?”

Kai looks up confused, training his gaze on Taehyun, who was sitting across from him. Kai momentarily glances down at the assignment they were supposed to be doing. His paper is completely blank while Taehyun's is filled with words. He makes a mental note to ask Taehyun to help him with it when they got home.

“Ya, I'm fine… Why?” Kai asks.

“Um, well… I think you're going to crush that pen…” Taehyun says, pointing down at Kai's hand. Kai looks down at his hand to see that he is quite literally crushing the life out of his poor pen. He drops it abruptly, before sighing loudly and holding his head in his hands.

“I'm fine, Hyung. It's just….” He pauses, realizing he really can't verbalize everything that's bothering him.

“Everything?” Taehyun asks. Kai nods tiredly.

“Ya, everything…” He echoes back. “I think I need a break…” 

“Don't we all?” Taehyun says, sighing and sitting back in his chair. He slides his worksheet over to Kai.

“Don't use your brain today.” Taehyun says, smiling when Kai looks up at him in disbelief.

“Remember….” Taehyun says, smirking. “This is a one time thing.”

“Of course! Thanks hyung!” Kai says, nodding happily, his stress momentarily forgotten.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

By the time lunchtime comes around, Kai finds himself alone, waiting for the others in front of his locker. Taehyun had to have a quick word with a teacher and Yeonjun had left his backpack in the gym. It has only been a minute or so, but Kai is already feeling jittery. He decides to try and walk it off, but it ends up backfiring, because as he turns the corner, he finds himself face to face with Jaemin. Without a second thought, he whips around and begins walking in the opposite direction.

“Hey, aren't you one of Beomgyu's friends?” Jaemin calls out suddenly.

Kai's blood boils upon hearing the boy utter his friends name. The friend that he had beaten up, no less. He had broken his wrist, for God's sake! Kai turns around, eyes blazing.

“It's none of your business. And don't you dare say his name again.” Kai says, fighting to keep his voice down. Jaemin shrinks into himself, avoiding Kai's angry gaze.

“Listen, I just wanted to talk to him… To apologize.” He mutters. Kai almost bursts out laughing.

“And what do you think you can say that'll make him forgive you?” He asks, scoffing. Though if he is completely honest with himself, he knows that Beomgyu would forgive him almost instantly. He's just too nice sometimes. However, Kai does wonder why a bully like Jaemin would even care this much for forgiveness.

“I-i know that nothing I say will change what I did. But I'm still willing to try…” Jaemin replies. Kai frowns for a second, realizing that Jaemin sounds quite sincere. He remembers what happened yesterday, when Beomgyu had said that Jaemin was acting differently. Maybe he really did regret his actions. But none of that really made a difference because Beomgyu wasn't exactly available for a nice chat at the moment.

“Ok fine, I'll take that.” Kai says, sighing. Jaemin's face lights up a little.

“But…” Kai continues. “He's not here today.”

“Ya, I noticed…” Jaemin says, his face dropping again. “I was going to ask you why he wasn't here. Is it ok if you give me his number? I really want to talk to him as soon as possible.”

“Well… He's actually in the hospital. He had a pretty bad accident yesterday.” Kai says, not fully understanding himself, why he was indulging this information.

“I could tell you which hospital, but it's probably better if you don't go today. He's not conscious yet and he might not even want to see you.”

Jaemin winces a little at that comment but doesn't try to object in any way. He accepts Kai's offer right away and once he gets the address, he thanks Kai and goes on his way. Kai is left in the hallway, wondering if he did the right thing.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It turns out, both boys had decided to go straight to the roof because it was faster for them. They had texted Kai to meet them there, but they didn't expect him to take so long. When he finally arrived, they were curious to know what kept him.

“Hey, Kai, what took you so long?” Yeonjun asks, as Kai walks out on to the roof. He sits down cross-legged, across from Taehyun and next to Yeonjun.

“Well…” He says, sighing. “I ran into Jaemin…”

Both boys eyes widen as they share a glance first with each other and then with the younger boy sitting in front of them.

“And…?” Taehyun prompts.

Kai quickly tells them what had happened with Jaemin, adding that he didn't really know if what he did was ok or not.

“I think it should be fine. You said he sounded sincere right?” Taehyun says. Kai nods.

“Besides, it would be stupid for him to try anything in the hospital.” Yeonjun states.

“Well, let's hope they sort it out. It'll be one less thing for all of us to worry about.” Kai says.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Soobin doesn't know how long he's been staring out the window, but he knows it must be a long time, since the image of the sun is imprinted on his irises, obscuring his vision slightly when he finally turns away. Shaking his head a little, he looks back at the empty chair his mother had occupied a few hours ago. She hadn't said where she was going, but he knew it was probably to the bakery. The moms still had so much to do and Soobin understood that. But in light of the recent events, it all seemed so trivial. Of course, he couldn't blame the moms for that. They were under the impression that he just had a really bad asthma attack, while Beomgyu hit his head, falling from the stairs.

He turns around to face the other side of the room, where Beomgyu lay on his bed, still unconscious. He feels an immense wave of guilt wash over him. He had _known_ that something bad would happen if he tried his power on Beomgyu. He had _known_. But he couldn't say no to his dongsaengs. He just couldn't. Maybe if he turned back time now, he would know better, but even he knew that it would probably just happen all over again. 

His thoughts wandered over to what had happened to him. But what _had_ happened to him? He still couldn't figure it out fully, even as his mind slowly became clearer and he started remembering more of what happened yesterday. He remembered feeling choked and Taehyun screaming for Yeonjun. He remembered Yeonjun trying to talk to him as he tried desperately to breathe. He remembered his bracelet glowing and his airway clearing suddenly as Yeonjun yanked it off his wrist. Looking down at said bracelet, he vaguely wonders if he should have waited until he was discharged before putting the bracelet back on. Or if he should just get rid of it all together. He still has slight trouble breathing and he really doesn't want any more problems. Maybe it's stupid to attribute the event to the bracelet, but it's the only explanation at this point. The only thing he knows for sure is that the bracelet is magical, and it is dangerous.

The door opens suddenly and the doctor comes in, smiling upon seeing Soobin looking more awake than he had last time.

“Soobin, how are you feeling?” The doctor asks amiably. 

“Well, I've been better…” Soobin says, jokingly. “But overall better than when I first woke up.”

“ Ok…” The doctor says, jotting some stuff down on his papers. “Any discomfort?”

“Well, it's still a little hard to breathe and I'm kinda dizzy but that's it.” Soobin says. The doctor nods, writing some more stuff down, before looking up at him with a smile on his face.

“You have a few visitors. Do you think you're up for it or should I send them back?” The doctor must have known that Soobin wouldn't refuse because his smile only grew when Soobin nodded enthusiastically.

He left the room and came back a minute later with the boys. They immediately began crowding him, all speaking at the same time so it became a mess of sounds. Soobin smiles and laughs trying to hug each of them in turn. As the doctor leaves, Kai turns suddenly and says,

“Bye, Dad!”

Soobin turns to him in mild shock.

“He's your dad?”he asks, an eyebrow raised. Kai nods enthusiastically. Now that Soobin knows, he can definitely see the resemblance.

“Well…”Soobin says, smiling. “Give him a big hug from me. I owe him one.” 

Kai smiles and gives the ok sign before moving aside to let the other boys get more hugs.

At long last the hugging ends and the boys all situate themselves on the bed. Yeonjun sits on the end near Soobin's feet, while the two maknaes sit next to him on either side. Kai has an arm thrown around his shoulder, while Taehyun is still hugging him fiercely as if afraid that Soobin might vanish if he lets go.

“So, Binnie. How're you feeling?” Yeonjun asks.

“Not too bad.” He says. “They said I won't be needing the mask anymore and if everything else goes well, I'll be discharged by tomorrow or Friday.”

“Aha, so just in time for the grand opening, right?” Kai says.

“Mhm.” Soobin says, nodding. He laughs a little then says, “somehow it doesn't seem as important as it did yesterday.”

“Ya, it doesn't…” Taehyun says. “We missed you alot today, Hyung.” He says, suddenly changing the subject.

“Ya, and Beomgyu Hyung.” Kai says. Soobin grimaces a little at that, glancing over at the still unconscious boy. The other boys follow suit and direct their sad gazes to the other side of the room.

“I wonder what happened to him…” Yeonjun says. Soobin lets his gaze fall to the ground, the guilt from earlier returning at full force.

“I hope he wakes up soon…” Taehyun mutters.

“He's not going to die, is he?” Kai asks, his eyes widening. Soobin lets out a little gasp at that, his eyes widening along with Kai's. _What if he_ did _die?_

_It would be my fault then._

_He will have died because of me._

_Just because I couldn't use my head and say no._

_If I lose Beomgyu, I'll lose everyone._

_They'll all blame me for it._

_They'll leave me._

_It's what I deserve…_

“Um, Hyung?” Taehyun's voice jolts Soobin out of his thoughts. He jumps a little and turns his head to see his distressed friend staring at him hard. A few seconds later he realizes that all 3 boys have stopped talking in favor of staring at him in concern.

“Are you ok?” Taehyun asks.

“Huh? I-I'm fine. Why?”

Yeonjun shares a worried glance with the other 2 boys.

“Uh, nothing, you were just breathing kinda weird for a second there…”

“Uh, well yeah, I still have trouble breathing every now and then, but I'm fine now.” Soobin says, trying to smile, reassuringly. The boys didn't seem all that convinced, but decided to drop it.

The rest of their visit became super awkward after that and the boys ran out of things to talk about. Since it was obvious that bringing up the events of last night made Soobin uncomfortable, Yeonjun wrapped up their visit quickly and rushed the boys out the door. He was sad to leave Soobin so soon but figured that it would be better to visit when both boys were awake.

With a rushed farewell, the boys left, sad that they could do nothing but wait for their friends to recover.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Ironically, it's the overbearing silence and impenetrable darkness that finally wakes Beomgyu up. He opens his eyes slowly and frowns when he can't see a thing. He turns his head this way and that, trying to figure out where he is and what exactly happened. He winces slightly when his head begins to pound relentlessly. Realizing that he won't figure anything out just lying around, he tries to get up, but stops when his head suddenly starts spinning. He groans in pain as a wave of nausea hits him out of nowhere. His entire body starts feeling uncomfortably hot and that's when Beomgyu starts panicking. He begins breathing heavily, tears pricking at the corners of his eyes. He hears a beeping noise from the corner of the room and turns his head towards it, immediately realizing that it's a heart monitor.

_Oh, I'm in a hospital..._

_Okay, okay, calm down, Beomgyu. You're going to be fine..._

Realizing that he's not in any immediate danger, the panic begins to subside a little, but the immense pain he's in causes his tears to slip over the edge and roll down his cheeks. He wraps his arms around himself, head bowed, trying hard to reel it in. But he's so shaken up, both mentally and physically, that the tears keep falling. The heart monitor begins to beep erratically again and suddenly the room is flooded with light, as the doctor walks in to his room. Beomgyu looks up at him tearfully and the doctor walks over to him, putting his hands on his shoulders.

“Don't cry, son. Everything will be alright. Now lie back down for me, ok?” The man says gently, while slowly lowering him back down on the bed. Beomgyu complies and tries hard to stem the tears. The doctor waits until he has calmed down a little before continuing to speak. But surprisingly, it's Beomgyu who speaks first.

“Who are you?” He asks, staring at the doctor through half lidded eyes.

“I'm your doctor, dear” he replies. Beomgyu shakes his head, sluggishly.

“Why...do you look so familiar?” He asks. The doctor pauses for a second, seemingly thinking about Beomgyu’s question. A look of realization dawns on him and he smiles a little.

“Do you know Huening Kai?” He asks.

“He's one of my best friends…” Beomgyu replies, nodding slowly.

“Well, I'm his father” the doctor tells him. Beomgyu's face lights up slightly.

“Ah, I see…. Well he definitely takes after you…” He says, lifting up his still wrapped wrist. “ He's been helping me take care of this. It should be healed in the next couple of days.”

“Well, he did a pretty good job!” Kai's dad marvels, while examining his wrist.

After that, Kai's dad checked Beomgyu's vitals and stated that he was still in an unstable condition, though not as bad as when he was admitted last night. However it was still too soon to tell when he would be discharged. 

“It's 6 am right now, so I think you should try and get some sleep. I don't think it would be advisable to let you have any visitors today. Except of course your parents, if you want.” The doctor stated. Beomgyu laughs dryly and turns his head away.

“They won't come…” He mutters. “Well, my mom might, but it's not very likely.” Beomgyu has no idea why he is even saying all this to the doctor. Maybe his head is too muddled to make sense of the situation, but he can't stop the words that leave his mouth. The doctor frowns in concern and comes a little closer to him.

“Why ever not?” He asks. Beomgyu shrugs, not really wanting to get into it.

“It's nothing. Forget it. Is it ok if you allow visitors for me? I really wanna see the guys if that's ok…” Beomgyu says, trying to redirect the conversation. The doctor senses that Beomgyu would rather not talk about it.

“Alright, Beomgyu, I'll allow it, but just for them.” the doctor says. Beomgyu nods, wordlessly. After a pause, he hears soft footsteps retreating and the swish of a curtain as the doctor leaves the room. As the doctor leaves, it suddenly dawns on Beomgyu that if there's a curtain separating his side of the room, then that must mean that he's sharing the room with someone. He vaguely wonders who his roommate could be before sighing heavily and trying his best to get some sleep.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Beomgyu wasn't expecting any visitors until the later hours of the day, so he is very confused when Kai's dad comes in an hour later saying that someone has come to visit him.

“Really? Who?” Beomgyu asks, rising out of his bed slightly and staring at the doctor. The doctor's expression is very strange. He seems nervous, concerned, and worried at the same time.

“He says his name is Jaemin.”

Beomgyu's mouth drops open. _Jaemin? There must be a mistake…_

“um… What did he say exactly?” Beomgyu asks slowly, trying to assess the situation.

“Well first he said that he wanted to see you and when I told him you weren't having visitors today he started begging and saying that he just wants to apologise and then he'll leave. He said that if you say no then I should tell you that he's really sorry and that he hopes he can make amends.” The doctor tells him. 

Beomgyu nods, processing this new information. He obviously has no idea of Jaemin’s intentions or if he's even telling the truth. But he eventually decides that it's probably better to get this over with. If not now, this conversation is bound to happen soon anyway.

“Ok, I guess you can let him in.” Beomgyu says. The doctor nods, moving back towards the curtain to leave the room. Before he leaves, he turns around one last time to say,

“Let me know if he bothers you.” And with that he leaves. Beomgyu realizes that Kai has probably told his dad the entire situation already, which explained his strange expression from before.

Beomgyu sat on his bed in silence, thinking about his strange new situation. He is very confused about Jaemin as a whole. He had seemed like such a menacing person and Beomgyu still felt uncomfortable every time he thought about their first and second encounter. However, their third encounter was very strange. It seemed like he was an entirely different person. The guilt and awkwardness seemed to be coming off of him in waves. He hadn't made any moves against him, verbally or physically, even when Beomgyu had not exactly been nice to him. And the comment he had made about his wrist completely caught him off gaurd. _What's his deal?_ Beomgyu wonders. He doesn't have to wait long it seems because a few moments later, the doctor comes back inside. Beomgyu glances up just in time to see Jaemin come inside after the doctor, ducking his head and looking anywhere but at him.

“Ok Beomgyu, I'm going back now. If you need anything, just let me know.” The doctor says. 

Beomgyu nods, but doesn't say anything, his eyes following Kai's dad as he leaves the room. Once he's gone, Beomgyu slowly turns his gaze towards Jaemin who is still standing where the doctor left him, as far away from Beomgyu as the room allows. He still hasn't lifted his head and is staring at his feet as if they're the most interesting things in the world. Beomgyu clears his throat, awkwardly, before attempting to speak.

“Um, you can sit, you know…” Beomgyu says. Jaemin walks over to the small sofa next to the bed, haltingly, and sits down. 

“so… How did you know where to find me?” Beomgyu asks.

“Your friend told me…” Again, Jaemin's words hold absolutely no malice and are said so quietly that Beomgyu wonders if he had imagined them. He also notices that Jaemin has still made no move to look up at him.

“Which friend?” Beomgyu asks.

“Um, I think his name was Kai… The one that…” Jaemin trails off, uncertainly, but Beomgyu knows what he was going to say. He was going to refer to the time when Kai saw Jaemin beating him up and tried to stop him. Beomgyu watches as Jaemin's expression falls, immense guilt transforming his face into one of regret.

“Ok, and why did you come exactly?” Beomgyu asks, unable to mask the slight annoyance in his tone as the unpleasant encounter replays in his mind. Jaemin gulps, fidgeting with his hands slightly before answering.

“Um, well… I came to… apologize. But now that I'm here... I'm not sure if I deserve a chance to do that…” He says, curling in on himself further, his voice progressively getting quieter. Beomgyu sighs heavily, begining to feel bad for the boy in front of him.

“Well, how about you say what you came to say and I'll decide whether or not I want to forgive you?” Beomgyu suggests. Jaemin finally looks up slightly, a little hope in his eyes, but he looks back down quickly, nervousness overtaking him.

“Um, ok… I just… Well, I know that there's really nothing I can say but I was just having a really terrible day. I really didn't mean to hurt you. There's just been so much that's been bothering me… I kinda let it out on the wrong person…” He groans in frustration suddenly and puts his head in his hands.

“I'm just so sorry… I really don't know what else to say... And I just had to tell you as soon as possible so that's why I came so early so I could get it over with before school or I'd keep thinking about it for a whole other day… I'm sorry Beomgyu, I really am…” He says, before sighing and falling silent once more. He doesn't lift his head from his hands and looks as if he has just suffered a great defeat.

Beomgyu doesn't respond for a long time. Jaemin sounds sincere but his explanation kind of fell short…

It seemed to Beomgyu that the boy was leaving something out. He had said there was so much bothering him and that he let it out in the wrong person. That really makes Beomgyu wonder what terrible things he could be going through that caused him to literally beat him up.

However, Beomgyu also thinks that maybe this doesn't happen very often, if the amount of guilt Jaemin is feeling is anything to go by. And he had come so early, an hour before school, just so he could try and make things right. But…

“Didn't your parents ask you where you're going?” It was a random thought, but now Beomgyu is curious. Any parent would be curious as to why their child was leaving so early for school. 

Jaemin makes a strange noise, that sounded like he was laughing and crying at the same time, before lifting his head slowly.

“Why would they notice something like that? They don't even notice I'm rarely at home…” He spoke as if he had forgotten that Beomgyu was there, as if he is talking to himself almost. And his voice is so quiet that Beomgyu has to strain his ears to hear it. Stil, Jaemin's words slightly shock Beomgyu.

“What do you mean?” He asks. 

Jaemin glances up suddenly, as if just realizing that Beomgyu is present. His eyes widen, slightly and his face slowly turns red as he looks away once more.

“Forget it… You weren't supposed to hear that… I-I'm sorry…”

“No, don't apologize, you've already done that. Just tell me what you meant by that.” Beomgyu isn't trying to sound harsh, but he can't help it. For some reason, Jaemin's words gave him a bad feeling in his gut. Parental neglect is no joke and Beomgyu can relate to that on a personal level.

Jaemin sighs heavily, running his hands through his hair. He looks at Beomgyu for a solid five seconds before it all comes spilling out.

“My parents…” He pauses for a second there, as if wondering how he should continue. He takes a deep breath and then says two alarming words.

“... Are dead…”

Beomgyu looks towards him sharply, his eyes widening in shock. Maybe he had asked the wrong question at the wrong time. Before he can say anything, however, Jaemin continues speaking.

“They both taught at the old school and died in the school fire seven years ago. I still remember most of my time with them, but I guess that somehow makes the aftermath worse.” He takes a pause, staring at the floor. Beomgyu notices he is still speaking as if talking to himself.

“My adoptive parents took me in a few months after their death. They have two other kids and all four of them basically work together to make my life a hell. I don't even know why they adopted me. I think they just had a whole lot of money that they didn't know what to do with. And now they've wasted all that money on useless shit and it's on me to fix that problem for them. So most days, I work late at a Best buy. I have a buddy there. His name's Taeyong. Him and Ryujin are all I really have.” He says, trailing off. 

Beomgyu sits in silence for awhile, letting all of that sink in. He had always thought that his situation with his parents, mostly his dad, had been bad, but at least he didn't expect much from him. This was a whole other level of stress.

“And... What happened the day we met…?” Beomgyu asks carefully. Jaemin's nervous expression intensifies and he doesn't answer for awhile.

“Uh, well… The day before school started… My dad got yelled at by his boss and he was super mad that day... And my mom decided it was a good time to tell him about my own boss’s complaints about me falling asleep on the job…” He takes another pause, and his face takes on a contemplative look, as if he's wondering how to continue, how much he should tell.

“Things... Didn't turn out very well… “He says finally. “I left the house and stayed at Ryujin’s place. She comforted me and said she'd always be there for me and that she'd never leave me. It helped a little but… It didn't heal everything. The next day, when I saw her with you, my mind immediately jumped to the wrong idea and... Well you know the story from there…” 

Throughout the entire story, Beomgyu had a growing suspicion that he knew exactly what Jaemin is trying to hide. He had waited to see if Jaemin would say it himself but it didn't seem like it so Beomgyu decided to cut to the chase.

“Jaemin... Your father doesn't… beat you up... Does he?” He asks. 

And that's when Jaemin's nervous expression turns into one of outright panic. In hindsight, maybe it had been a bad idea to be so forward, but that is the only explanation for Jaemin's behavior. His immense guilt could be from mimicking his father's actions. To Beomgyu, this seemed like a very logical explanation.

“... Not... Really?” Jaemin doesn't sound very sure of himself.

“Don't lie to me.” Beomgyu says sternly. Jaemin laughs dryly once again.

“I've already told you my life story…” He mutters.

“So it shouldn't be too hard to tell me this too right? I'm just concerned Jaemin. Talking helps, trust me. But if you'd rather not, I can respect that.” Beomgyu replies. Jaemin looks up at him, frowning slightly.

“Why do you keep talking like you can relate to me?” Jaemin asks, curiously.

“Who knows? Maybe I can…” Beomgyu says, a tired smile on his face. Jaemin stares at him intensely for a few seconds before sighing.

“Well… My dad doesn't abuse me… Anymore… He used to a few years ago, but he stopped for a long time. It's been so long that I forgot how it felt… But that night before school, he was so mad... And I felt it coming... So that's why I ran away...I haven't been at home much since then... I'm either at Taeyong’s or Ryujin's…” he pauses, staring at the floor. “So... Can you relate? Tell me your story now. Is it just as bad as mine?”

“Not even close.” Beomgyu mutters, guiltily.

“My mom died in childbirth and my dad remarried almost immediately. My stepmom isn't home most of the time so I'm stuck with my dad who's always mad and drunk. He blames me for Mom's death and he beat me up once saying it was all my fault. He hasn't hit me since then because my stepmom threatened to leave him. I really love her but I just wish she was around more you know. I used to think my situation was bad, but now that I've heard your story…” Beomgyu trails off, not knowing how to finish his sentence.

“Don't feel too bad.” Jaemin says. “It's just how things are. And I'm not completely alone. I have Taeyong and Ryujin. Oh, and just so you know, this whole story wasn't to guilt trip you into forgiving me. You're still fully entitled to hate my guts. I just felt that you deserved an apology…”

“Of course, Jaemin, don't worry about it.” Beomgyu says, smiling slightly. “I probably would've forgiven you anyways. You sounded pretty genuine after all and I really don't think you meant any harm. It was just a misunderstanding.”

Jaemin looks up and smiles slightly before looking back down at his feet. “Thanks man…” He mutters, the relief and happiness clear in his voice.

“No prob.” Beomgyu says. He tilts his head slightly, staring at the boy before saying. “You know, you can look at me for more than a few seconds when we're talking. I won't bite…” He says holding back a laugh. Jaemin laughs at that, his face shining as the gloom vanishes slowly. He smiles at Beomgyu.

“You're a good kid… Don't let anyone else beat you up kid, ok? I'm sorry once again.” He says, standing up. Beomgyu nods and holds out his hand.

“Friends?” He asks, an innocent smile upon his face. Jaemin reaches forward and clasps Beomgyu's hand.

“Friends.” He agrees, his smile matching Beomgyu's.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just couldn't keep Jaemin as a villain...
> 
> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	10. Rising Flames

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guysssss  
> Its a little shorter than anticipated but here it is  
> The first chapter of this decade  
> Another 'dream chapter' for y'all ;)
> 
> One more thing before I start...  
> I'm not sure if y'all noticed but I have alot of trouble jumping around with tenses so for the time being I've decided to stick with past tense  
> Hope it doesn't confused anyone and if it does I'm rly sry
> 
> Anyways without further ado, let's begin :)

By the time Jaemin left it was nearly 8 am, and the doctors had pulled back the curtains separating every room. It had taken Beomgyu a few seconds to recognize Soobin sleeping on the bed opposite his and another few seconds to fully comprehend what it could mean.  _ Why is Soobin here? Did something happen after I passed out?  _ He wondered. He was truly alarmed and was hoping that Soobin would wake up soon so he could ask him. He didn't have it in him to wait until after school to question the boys. However, Soobin remained fast asleep. When Kai's dad came to check up on him, Beomgyu asked if he could wake Soobin up and talk to him, but the doctor strictly told him no. Apparently, Soobin was having trouble sleeping and they had given him new medication that would make him drowsy. Beomgyu nodded in understanding at that, but sighed inwardly, his impatience and curiosity constantly nudging him.

Eventually, Beomgyu fell asleep waiting for the other boy to wake up.  _ He'll be awake by the time the other boys come to visit,  _ he told himself. Of course, he would find out later how very wrong he was...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The doctor had informed Soobin about the new medication and that it would make him drowsy. He had also been told that it would be a completely dreamless sleep. So Soobin was incredibly shocked when he was thrown into another terrible nightmare after falling asleep…

He was 9 again, curled up in a tight ball against a wall. He opened his eyes slowly and immediately gasped at the destruction around him. He was surrounded by raging flames, the heat beating against him relentlessly. Eyes widening, he crawled further away from the flames, his back hitting the wall once again. Putting his hands down to brace himself, he felt something cold and damp underneath his palm. Glancing down quickly, he discovered a wet towel. He snatched it up and pressed it against his mouth and nose.  _ Ah, something's going right…  _ his younger self thought. Just like in the previous dream, Soobin was only watching through the eyes of his younger counterpart and had no influence over his actions. The dream continued with the boy suddenly rising and leaving the room quickly. Analyzing the room before it was taken out of view, Soobin observed that it was a classroom, the desks and chairs barely recognizable as they crumbled beneath the flames. A terrible realization dawned on him then.  _ This… is the school fire...seven years ago… _

The boy continued to stumble through the hallways, breathing sparingly through the towel. He stopped suddenly as he caught sight of the havoc outside through a nearby window. Clutching the window sill, he watched as a flood of people poured out of several fire exits, pushing and shoving to get as far away from the building as possible. A number of firefighters leaped out of nearby firetrucks, fighting against the impenetrable crowd to get inside.

Soobin shook his head quickly, trying to focus on his current mission. Find the other boys and  _ get out. _ He continued running and before long there was a hallway that was completely blocked off. This, however, did not stop the boy. He simply closed his eyes for a few seconds and then ran through the flames, coming out on the other side, completely untouched.

_ How did I do that?  _ Soobin wondered, having just witnessed himself doing something that should be physically impossible.

The young boy, however, was completely unphased, and continued running. He finally stopped at a door and yanked it open. His eyes searching frantically, he finally found what he was looking for, but it only served to alarm him more. There was Taehyun, lying in the middle of the burning art room, a towel clutched tightly in one of his hands, his eyes shut. Rushing over to him, Soobin quickly put his own towel over the boy's mouth and began to frantically call his name, shaking him lightly. At long last, Taehyun finally opened his eyes and began coughing harshly. Soobin waited patiently, but his eyes were on the rising flames.

“Come on, Tae, we have to go.” He helped the boy up, supporting most of his weight, and got both of them out of the room.

“Hyung…” Taehyun muttered, when he finally stopped coughing. He held up the towel he had been holding earlier. It was completely dry.

“Take this one Hyung…” Soobin nodded and held the towel in his hands for a few seconds before lifting it up to his face. Unless he was being affected by the new medicine even in his dream, he could have sworn that the towel was now wet.  _ It was dry before though? Well…  _ He decided,  _ I apparently have more than one power… I guess anything is possible now. _

“Did you find him yet, Hyung?” Taehyun asked suddenly. Soobin had no idea who he was talking about, but apparently his younger self knew exactly who.

“No, Tae, but don't worry, we'll find him and all of us will get out of here together.” Soobin reassured. The boy nodded wearily before coughing into the towel once more, his steps becoming increasingly sluggish. Young Soobin looked down at him worriedly. He worried for the rest of his friends and what state he would find them in. He was lucky to be completely fine, but the others were defenseless against the fire. Well, technically so was he but-

“Hyung, why don't you use your water?” The boy at his side asked, as if reading his mind.

“This fire isn't normal fire, Taehyun.” Soobin replied.

“But neither is your water…” The boy pointed out.

“I can't concentrate when I'm this panicked!” Even as he said this, he conjured up a ball of water and threw it at some nearby flames. The fire lessened slightly in that area, before picking up again, becoming bigger than it was before. Soobin furrowed his eyebrows worriedly.

“Really hope Beomie’s ok…” He muttered to himself.

The boys finally reached their next destination, the gym, but before they could run inside, the door flew open and Yeonjun rushed out. He had a wet towel pressed against his face as well and when he caught sight of the two boys in front of him, his eyes widened to twice their size. He grabbed Soobin's arm and yanked them both inside.

“Did you find Beomgyu?!” He asked, panicked. Soobin shook his head, dejectedly. Yeonjun visibly deflated.

“I have no idea where he could possibly be! He wasn't in his 4rth period class! He was trying to tell me something before but I just…” The boy trailed off, miserably.

“Don't worry, we'll find him Hyung. For now, let's find Kai.” Soobin said, patting Yeonjun's shoulder. Yeonjun's eyes lit up at that.

“He's here! I have him with me! He just went to get a towel for himself.” And with that, Yeonjun gripped Soobin's arm again and weaved through the flames, though they were considerably less than the ones destroying the classrooms. Before long, Yeonjun had brought them to a nearby restroom. Kai was just coming out as they came in, his eyes zeroing in on his two recently found friends. He gave them a quick hug and inspection.

“Taehyun, is he ok…” Kai said worriedly, crouching down to be at eye level with the boy.

“The other classrooms didn't fare as well as the gym…” Soobin stated. “I got to him as fast as I could…”

“It's ok, he should be fine. He's a fighter, aren't you, Hyung?” Kai asked, smiling slightly for his brother. Taehyun nodded wearily, returning the smile. Of course there was no real way to prove that he'd be fine, but the boys were nothing if not optimistic.

“I'm lucky…” Taehyun said. “It's the people on the roof that I'm worried about…” 

Something suddenly clicked in Soobin's mind. He gasped, his eyes widening.

“What did you just say…?” Soobin asked Taehyun. Taehyun peered up at him, confusedly.

“Um, the people on the roof have it worse… Cuz heat rises…”

“That's it! The roof! He's on the roof! Beomgyu's on the roof!” Without waiting for a reply from anyone, Soobin took off in the direction of the staircase. He heard the other boys footsteps behind him. Good, they were following him, he wasn't going crazy, his theory made sense.

And sure enough, he was right. They found Beomgyu curled up by the edge of the roof. But Taehyun was also right. The entire roof was covered in flames. With incredible willpower, Soobin conjured up a huge wave and mentally pushed it against the flames. The flames were doused momentarily and the four boys ran across the roof to their friend. They crouched around him and Soobin realized with alarm that the boy was sobbing,  _ hard. _

H-hyungs! I- I really didn't mean to! I didn't mean to! I t-tried to tell you!” He wailed. Soobin quickly gathered him up in his arms.

“We know, we know you didn't mean to. It's ok, everything is going to be ok. We're here now. We can talk about this after all of this is resolved, ok Beomie? For now, we really have to get out.” Soobin said. Beomgyu nodded, silent tears still rolling down his cheeks. They leave the roof quickly, Soobin throwing one last miserable glance at it. The place had held so many memories for them and now it would die.

The way back was so much more treacherous than the way up had been. Pieces of the ceiling had begun to crumble and fall to the floor below, barely missing the people still inside. Still, the boys believed they would be able to get out because that was all they could do. They could only hope that everything would turn out ok.

And so far, so good. They cleared the fifth, fourth, third and second floors without any big problems. Even Taehyun seemed to have gathered strength from how close they were to safety, as his steps quickened a bit.

However, it was right after they stepped off the stairs, when things started to go terribly wrong. Soobin was so fixated on their path, that he had failed to notice the ceiling rubble that was falling straight towards him. That was his first mistake. He heard a yell behind him suddenly and an immense force pushed him roughly out of the way. He and Taehyun crashed into Yeonjun and Kai who were in front of them. Whipping around, he saw Beomgyu lying on the floor right where he had been a few seconds ago. The boy had taken a hit for him and that hit Soobin harder than the rubble ever would have.

“Beomgyu!” He rushed over to the boy, closely followed by the others. Beomgyu was clutching his right leg tightly, his eyes shut in pain.

“Hyung… I… I think I broke it…” He said, his voice straining, as he slowly opened his eyes. He glanced down at the already bruising skin, grimacing as he did so.

“It's ok, I got you Beomgyu.” He helped the boy up, his eyes slowly filling with tears. 

“You didn't have to do that, Beom…” He whispered. The boy shook his head, hobbling along with him.

“It's ok, Hyung. Let's not focus on that right now.”

Soobin nodded and began running at a slower pace than before to accommodate his injured friend. Sadly, Soobin realized that their slow pace wouldn't last long as they had to try and outrun the slowly increasing destruction around them.

For awhile, things seemed to be going well, and the boys began running faster as the front doors came in to view.

“Almost there guys!” Soobin yelled, trying to lift spirits.

But things started going downhill once more when he suddenly heard Yeonjun shout in alarm. Whipping his head towards the noise, he saw Taehyun's legs buckle underneath him, as if a string holding him up had snapped. With a small gasp, Soobin let go of Beomgyu and dove forward to catch Taehyun's unconscious body. That was his second mistake. Letting go of Beomgyu.

He realized his mistake almost right away as he looked back at Beomgyu. The boy had fallen on one knee and was desperately trying to rise. Before Soobin could do anything, however, the entire ground began to shake beneath them.

“What's happening?!” Kai yelled over the tumult.

“The ceiling! It's beginning to cave in, I think!” Yeonjun yelled, looking up the ceiling as cracks began to appear above them.

And Yeonjun was right, it  _ was _ caving in. But so was the  _ floor.  _ Cracks began to appear below them and they started to scoot away from them. That is, all except Beomgyu, who was still struggling to stand. As Soobin watched in horror, the floor suddenly collapsed beneath the injured boy and he fell, screaming, to the surface below.

“NO!” Soobin screamed, crawling over to the hole in the floor, paying no mind to the rubble falling all around him. He peered down into the hole, frantically searching for his friend. He found him trapped under the debris, his eyes closed shut. Soobin made up his mind. He would go down there and get his friend. From there, he'd try and find another way out, but he absolutely was  _ not _ going to leave Beomgyu down there.

“Soobin, I know what you're thinking! Don't do it!” Yeonjun said to him, suddenly, as if reading his mind.

“We can't leave him!”

“But the exit is getting blocked off!”

Soobin glanced back at the front doors and saw that there was debris covering the bottom half of the exit. Besides that, the wall was beginning to crumble under the weight of the ceiling. Still, Soobin shook his head.

“I can't leave him!” 

Yeonjun paused, then came to a decision.

“Go get him! We'll wait here and get you out!”

Soobin nodded, giving him a smile for staying by his side, but before he could even turn back around, two arms came out of nowhere and grabbed him tightly.

“Hey!” He yelped, struggling to get out of the mystery person's grasp. They didn't let up though and just pushed him forward towards the exit. He kicked and shoved but to no avail, as another pair of hands grabbed him, immobilizing him.

Soon they were out of the building, but they kept running as far away from the building as they could get. Finally, they threw Soobin roughly to the floor. He steadied himself and looked up at an unfamiliar girl. She had short, gray hair, framing a round face that was twisted in a frown.

“Lisa Noona…” Apparently his younger self was very familiar with this person.

Tears began to gather in his eyes.

“Why… Why would you do that? I could've saved him…”

The girl didn't respond, only turned her face away from him as her expression turned into one of guilt. He focused his eyes behind her, seeing three other girls wrestling the rest of his friends away from the burning building. 

When they were close enough to Soobin, he called out to one of the other girls, desperately.

“Jennie Noona! Tell me why!” He yelled, tears streaming down his face.

“It's ok, Binnie! We're going to go get him! Jisoo Unnie has an idea! Don't worry, ok?” She said, crouching down and smiling reassuringly at him.

“R-really?” He hiccupped. Another girl came to kneel down in front of him, after settling the other boys down.

“Of course, we wouldn't leave him for the world.” This girl had a slight accent that Soobin identified as Australian. She had a kind, friendly smile, that immediately put Soobin at ease.

“Ok… Thank you…”

“Of course, Binnie. We'll be right back.”

And with that, the four girls took off. He watched as they disappeared back into the building, risking their lives for a friend.

Soobin would never realize it, but that had been his third and final mistake.

Trusting his brother's safety in someone else's hands.

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is it just me, or are these 'dream chapters' hella confusing🤣
> 
> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	11. I Want You To Be Happier

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey peeps!  
> Thx so much for over 400 hits!  
> I know compared to other fics it's not alot, but it's more than I couldve asked for!  
> 💜💜💜  
> Anyways without further ado, on to chapter 11!

Soobin awoke with a terrible scream. Every rational part of his mind left him and all he knew was that he  _ had _ to go back inside to get his brother, he  _ had to. _

“BEOMGYU!” He screamed at the top of his lungs, trying desperately to stem the tears that were blurring his vision. He coughed harshly, as his throat tightened, his breathing becoming alarmingly fast. He gripped his chest tightly with both hands, trying to suck in a proper breath, but in between the sobbing and screaming it seemed impossible. 

It took him a full 30 seconds to realize that someone was talking to him. His eyes cleared slightly and he saw about 3 people that he didn't recognize trying to calm him down. He shook his head harshly, trying to twist out of the grasp these people had on him.

“No, let me go! I have to find Beomie!”

“Soobin dear, he's right beside you, see?” A slightly familiar voice said. He turned towards where the man had gestured and saw Beomgyu on the bed beside him. His head cleared a little, before the irrational panic came rushing back.

“He won't wake up! I have to-”

Soobin cut off abruptly, and began to cough. It was becoming increasingly hard for him to breathe and he had no idea why.

“Soobin, please calm down, you're having a panic attack, you need to calm down before you end up harming yourself.” Someone said to him. 

But Soobin didn't hear over the ringing in his ears and the harsh sound of his own panicked breaths.

“I have to tell him… I'm sorry…”

His breaths slowly calmed down as his body went limp all of a sudden. He coughed weakly a few times, before his mind finally shut down from lack of oxygen and pulled him back into the dark abyss of sleep.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Beomgyu sighed, glancing at the clock on the wall once more. 3:30, the boys should be here any second. He turned his head, slightly, his gaze resting on the sleeping boy in the bed next to his. Soobin was still fast asleep, and Beomgyu was getting increasingly anxious.

_ At least I can ask the boys what happened to him in a bit. _

As if on cue, he heard the boys hushed voices outside the door. He rose slightly, a small smile playing on his lips. He had really missed them and was happy that they were finally here after the terrible incident that had occured,  _ how long ago? _

He suddenly realized he had no idea what day it was. He checked his phone quickly.  _ Ah, it's Thursday. So two days have passed… Wow… _

Before he could think about it any further, the door opened and the boys walked in hesitantly. They each glanced at Soobin as they passed his bed and went over to Beomgyu.

“Hyung!” Kai greeted immediately latching on to the boy. Beomgyu smiled hugging him back and giving each of the boys their hugs as well. The boys seemed so relieved, but he could see that they were all holding back tears. It was only to be expected, he thought. He had been out for a long time.

After all the greetings were done, the boys settled all around him.

“How are you feeling, Beom?” Yeonjun asked softly.

“Well… Just really tired I guess. My head won't stop hurting, though…” There was more, but Beomgyu decided to cut it short, not wanting to worry the boys anymore.

“I'm so sorry, Beomie Hyung… I wish we could help… I wish we at least had an idea of what happened…” Taehyun said, morosely.

“It's ok, guys, really. This is all unbelievable, but we'll get through it don't worry.” Beomgyu said. The boys nodded in agreement, and a comfortable silence falls on them for awhile.

“This really sucks…” Taehyun said, breaking the silence. “I wish all five of us could talk at once and maybe figure this out together…”

“Ya, but...” Yeonjun said, laughing a little. “You two have a habit of taking turns being awake.”

That grabbed Beomgyu's attention, as he looked up at his hyung with a confused expression.

“Have you guys already visited Soobin Hyung?” He asked.

“Mhmm, he was awake yesterday.” Kai replied.

“But, guys…” Beomgyu said, leaning forward a bit. “What exactly happened to him?”

Yeonjun’s eyes widened slightly, a look of realization dawning on him.

“Right… You have no idea what happened…” He said. “Well… After you passed out, Kai took you to my room, while Taehyun stayed with Soobin…”

“He was… Super broken over what happened…” Taehyun continued. “ I was on the phone with your mother, when I realized I couldn't hear Soobin hyung crying anymore. I went to check up on him after hanging up and he basically ...” Taehyun trailed off as of unsure of how to continue.

“We don't really know what was happening but…” Kai said. “You could say it was like a really severe asthma attack. That's the only way to explain it at this point…”

“We don't really know what triggered it but…” Yeonjun said. “His bracelet was glowing and he stopped choking only when I yanked it off. He passed out after that…”

Beomgyu sat back, letting go of a breath he didn't know he had been holding. He let the new information sink in for awhile, before glancing at Soobin again.

“Do you think we could wake him up right now? And just talk to him?” Beomgyu didn't want to be too obvious, but he was even more desperate to talk to his hyung after finding out about what happened to him. Especially after hearing how he had broken down after he himself had passed out. And besides that, he thought that maybe Soobin would know more about what had happened since he was the one with the dreams and the magic. But Yeonjun shook his head quickly.

“No, we can't do that…” He said. Beomgyu pouted and turned his puppy eyes towards his Hyung.

“Why not?” He asked.

“Apparently, he had a panic attack this morning…” Kai explained.

“What, really? What time?” Beomgyu asked, his eyes widening. 

“Around 11 maybe? That's when our bracelets freaked out too, so I bet he had another dream…” Taehyun said.

“Oh, I was asleep by then…” Beomgyu said. “I hope we can ask him about his dream soon. Oh, btw…” 

The other boys looked up at Beomgyu's change of tone, prompting him to continue.

“Jaemin visited me today, and long story short, we made up. We're good now, so don't give him any trouble.” he said

Kai frowned at that.

“Really? What did he say that made you change your mind about him so drastically?” He asked.

“It's really not my place to say…” Beomgyu said after a pause. “It's his own personal business and he'll tell you if he wants. I really don't feel comfortable saying it.” He said, with a slight apologetic undertone to his voice.

“It's ok, we understand.” Yeonjun said. “But if he ever bugs you again, we're still gonna beat his ass.”

“Of course.” Beomgyu said, laughing.

The boys stayed for hours. Their moms were so busy so they decided to take full advantage. After about three hours had passed, Beomgyu began nodding off and Yeonjun took that as his cue to wrap up the visit.

“Goodnight, Beomie. Get well soon.” He said, softly, stroking the boys hair.

Beomgyu's eyelids slipped further, as he leaned in to the comforting touch.

“Night, Hyung. Night Tae and Kai…” Beomgyu said, smile tiredly. The boys give him one last hug, before departing and leaving Beomgyu to fall into the comforting darkness of sleep.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Soobin opened his eyes, slowly, staring at the ceiling in confusion. His mind was completely blank and slow in processing. Blinking slowly, he slowly became aware of the dull pain in his chest and throat. Besides that, his hands were shaking slightly and he just overall felt terrible. Slowly, things started coming back to him and he felt tears prick his eyes again.  _ What's wrong with me? Why are little things setting me off like this? _ He blinked rapidly in frustration, trying to stem the sudden tears. Turning his head, he saw that the curtains between his and Beomgyu's bed had been drawn again. Making a split second decision, he throws the blankets off of himself, before swinging his legs over the bed and attempting to stand.

He stumbles slightly, but that was only to be expected. He hadn't walked in two days. He made it to the curtains and gripped them tightly, both because his head had begun spinning and also because the nervousness and panic from before was threatening to overtake him once more. Taking a deep breath to steel himself, he pulled open the curtains and walked the rest of the way to Beomgyu's bed. He sat on the edge near his brother's head. Reaching out timidly, he began to stroke the boy's hair.

A sob ripped through him, as negative thoughts began filling his head once more.

_ Your fault, your fault, your fault _

Over and over again, his brain just wouldn't shut up. Soobin could feel his sobs begin to get out of control as his breath hitched in his throat.

“I'm sorry, Beomgyu. I'm so- sorry. Please w-wake up.” He begged through his tears. A coughing fit gripped him and his chest  _ hurt _ . But even when the coughs stopped, his chest ached, begging him to breathe properly. 

But Soobin  _ couldn't _ . He shut his eyes, wailing, bordering on a full blown attack.

“It's all- my fault. I'm sorry…” 

His vision began blurring and he could feel the tendrils of darkness creeping into his consciousness once again. But suddenly, it all stopped.

Everything stopped, his tears, his thoughts. Everything. 

He reeled in his breathing, hiccuping every once in awhile, and sat back confused. He immediately noticed the absence of his feelings of guilt and sadness, instead replaced by feelings of reassurance. Even his thoughts were singing a different tune.

_ Everything is going to be okay. Beomgyu will wake up and he'll be fine. It's not your fault. _

Soobin tilted his head, confused, and sat back.

_ These aren't my thoughts, these aren't my emotions…  _ he realized suddenly.

He felt a hand on his shoulder that he had failed to notice before. Turning his head, he saw Beomgyu, his eyes half open, a small smile on his face. His kept patting Soobin's shoulder. Soobin just stared at him in confusion.

“Feeling better?” Beomgyu whispered.

This shook Soobin out of his stupor, but rather than answering, he gripped Beomgyu's wrist and pried his hand off of his shoulder. Beomgyu's expression dropped, becoming worried and confused. Soobin stared at him hard and didn't speak for a long time. And when he finally did, it wasn't what Beomgyu had been expecting.

“What did you just do to me?” He said, voice trembling.

But Beomgyu couldn't answer.

All he could do was stare at his glowing red bracelet...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	12. Put Aside Your Worries (We Live For Today)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sry it took so long😭😭  
> I have an official schedule now so hopefully this shouldn't happen again  
> Anywhoooooo  
> This chapter is more of an info dump...which will only serve to confuse u more🤣  
> But our boys are finally getting discharged in this chapter so look forward to it💜💜

Beomgyu lay on his bed, his gaze transfixed on both his and Soobin's bracelets glowing brightly in the dark room. All his thoughts were so fixated on the bracelets that he failed to notice how agitated Soobin was becoming. Only when Soobin gripped his wrist harshly and tugged on it, did he finally snap out of it.

“What did you do, Beom!?” Soobin asked once again.

Beomgyu yanked his wrist out of the boy's grip and stared at him fearfully. His mind was still not functioning at its normal speed and he was a bit alarmed at Soobin's harsh behavior.

“I- I don't know!” He yelled in panic. “I just wanted to make you feel better!”

“So…” Soobin seemed to be contemplating how to word his next statement. “You have the power to manipulate emotions?”

“I guess? I don't even know?” Beomgyu hoped he didn't sound as confused as he felt. 

Their bracelets had glowed and they already knew that meant that someone had unlocked a power. But Beomgyu really hadn't been thinking when he woke up and saw Soobin in tears. His only thought was that he had to stop his Hyung’s tears somehow. He had reached out and willed his brother to be happier… And it had happened?

“That must be it, Beomie…” Soobin said. “That's insane… Do you know how dangerous that could be? You could make people fear you at will!”

Beomgyu frowned. He had just used his power to save Soobin from a panic attack and that's the first thing he has to say about it?

“No more dangerous than your power… I mean I  _ am  _ in the hospital because of it…” Beomgyu regretted it as soon as the words left his mouth. Soobin visibly deflated and a stream of apologies began pouring from his mouth once again.

“It's ok, Soobin Hyung, really. I was just messing! You don't have to apologize, I've already had my share of apologies for today…” He said. Soobin turned to look at him in confusion, and Beomgyu took the liberty to explain what had happened with Jaemin. Soobin nodded in understanding.

“I'm gonna be honest. I did  _ not _ expect that from him. What did he even say? I bet he just fed you some bs and you forgave him just like that…” 

Beomgyu shook his head, chuckling.

“No, his apology was genuine, but I'm not gonna tell you what he said. It's kinda personal…”

“Oh well…” Soobin said with a sigh. “Worth a shot…”

“By the way…” Beomgyu began hesitantly. “The boys told me about what happened to you…”

“Oh…” Soobin sighed. Of course, Beomgyu couldn't have known. He was already out by the time everything else had happened.

“Do you… Have any idea why it happened?” Beomgyu asked. Soobin frowned and glanced up.

“Actually… I do… “ He began. “I mean… I think it was a warning… Not to use my power on humans…”

Beomgyu frowned in confusion. That theory  _ did _ kinda make sense. Except for one little fact….

“Didn't I just use my power on you though? And we're both fine, so…” Beomgyu trailed off.

Soobin sighed, rubbing his eyes.

“I don't know then, Beomie… Maybe we can talk to the boys about this tomorrow… I bet Taehyun will have some theories…”

Beomgyu nodded, a small yawn escaping him.

“One last thing, Hyung… What did you remember this time?”

Soobin didn't respond for a long time, his face a blank slate, not giving away anything in the slightest.

“Beomie…” He finally said with a sigh. “I think I know how our school burned down 7 years ago…”

A gasp escaped Beomgyu's mouth, his eyes widening. He waited for Soobin to continue, holding his breath.

“But… I think I wanna tell all of you at once if that's ok…”

Beomgyu nodded, a little disappointed, but he understood. 

Soobin stood and began walking over to his own bed, when Beomgyu realized he didn't want to be alone.

“Um, Hyung?” He said in a small voice.

Soobin turned back, an eyebrow raised.

“Could you… Stay with me?” He asked, eyes downcast.

Soobin smiled widely and grabbed his blanket from his bed, before coming back to Beomgyu.

“Of course, Beomie… Now scoot over.”

The boy grinned and made room for his Hyung. Soobin held his brother close, his thoughts going back to everything that had happened to him both in real life and in his most recent dream. He swallowed back tears and held him tighter.

“Hyung, you're suffocating me!” Beomgyu said with a giggle.

“I'm sorry. I just don't want to lose you.” Soobin whispered.

Beomgyu peered up at his Hyung, with a smile brighter than the sun.

“You won't, Hyung. Cuz I'm not going anywhere.”

And for the first time since they had come to the hospital, the boys slept in peace.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Beomgyu… I don't think I can do this anymore…”

“Hm?”

Beomgyu looked up from his phone where he was mindlessly scrolling, not really processing what he saw. He turned his gaze to Soobin who was standing near the window, staring outside intensely, his arms crossed. Beomgyu could almost imagine the frustrated pout on his Hyung's face. A small giggle escaped his lips at the image. Soobin whirled around to face him, his face a spitting image of what he had imagined. Beomgyu laughed louder, throwing his head against the pillows.

“It's not funny! I'm  _ dying _ of boredom here!”

Beomgyu only laughed harder. They had been awake for maybe two hours now, and all Soobin had been doing was complaining about his boredom. Beomgyu thought that maybe he should sympathize with the boy more, but he just thought his brother's complaining was hilarious.

Soobin's pout deepened as he watched Beomgyu laugh at him.

“It's ok, Hyung.” Beomgyu relented. “He said they'll be here soon.”

“Ugh,  _ him. _ ” Soobin said, barely holding back an eye roll. “Jaemin and… What was his girlfriend's name?”

“Ryujin.” Beomgyu told him.

“I still don't get it. How are you two best buddies now?”Soobin said, shaking his head.

Beomgyu sighed. Of all his friends, Soobin seemed to be the most reluctant in accepting Jaemin. 

“Let's just say… He was having a bad day on Monday… And that we can sort of relate to each other…” Beomgyu said.

“Relate to each other?” Soobin asked.

Beomgyu flinched and glanced over at Soobin. He hadn't meant to say that. He had completely forgotten that only Jaemin knew his family situation.  _ Ugh what do I say now?  _ Turns out he didn't have to say anything.

“You mean his parents also suck?” Soobin said, turning his piercing gaze towards Beomgyu.

“How did you…?” 

Soobin shrugged, saying, “I'm more perceptive than people think. I just noticed that neither your stepmom or dad came to visit you… And your smile always seems strained around your mother. I can tell you love her, but she can't be doing much for you if she didn't think to visit you. You've never mentioned your dad to us once and neither has your mom. That must mean he's either never around or you don't have a good relationship with him.”

Beomgyu stared long and hard at Soobin, his mind utterly blown.

“Why… Aren't you in the FBI? You're not an...undercover detective, right?”

Now it was Soobin's turn to laugh.

“No, no, Beomgyu! I'm not even sure if I'm right, these are just theories…”

“Well, you're pretty spot on… I'm keeping my eye on you, Choi Soobin.” Beomgyu said, smiling.

“I surrender!” Soobin said, still laughing.

Before either of them could say anything else, the doctor walked in with Jaemin and Ryujin closely following him.

“Hey, Beom-” Jaemin stopped short as his gaze catches Soobin's. His eyes widened as he flinched back.

“Don't worry!” Soobin said, trying to hold back a laugh. “I won't bite! I don't hate you for the time being!”

Jaemin smiled hesitantly and began making his way forward.

“Of course, that can change very quickly…” Soobin said darkly.

Jaemin stopped in his tracks, throwing a very anxious glance in his direction.

This time, Soobin  _ did _ laugh.

“I'm just messing! Come in.”

The doctor smiled at Soobin's antics and left the boys (and one girl) to themselves.

Ryujin immediately rushed over to Beomgyu.

“Beomgyu, I am  _ so  _ sorry. I'm basically the reason for your fight with Jae and it's all because I don't know my boundaries. I  _ swear _ I wasn't trying to flirt with you or anything, I was trying to be friendly and make you feel comfortable, but of course that's the exact opposite of what I did. I'm really sorry, I hope you didn't think I was leading you on or anything.” Ryujin said in a rush.

“It's ok! Really! Please don't apologize! You weren't leading me on, don't worry. And I know you didn't mean any harm. You were the very first person to approach me in school and I'm very grateful for that.” Beomgyu said.

Ryujin immediately smiled and let out a sigh.

“Glad we sorted that out…” She said.

“You guys can sit on that couch over there.” Soobin directed them.

After the two had situated themselves, Jaemin took the stage, looking much more comfortable than before. And, Soobin noted, a lot less menacing. With this realization, Soobin began to open his mind more towards the idea of Jaemin and Beomgyu's new found friendship. He thought that maybe the two were really just two sides of a coin. Beomgyu's situation had caused him to become a much nicer person than his parents, while Jaemin's situation had manifested itself into unchecked rage. 

Soobin took his last statement back as soon as he thought of it. From the way Beomgyu spoke of him, it seemed as though this was a one time thing for Jaemin and that he was normally a pleasant person. Plus if he had such a nice girl friend like Ryujin, then he must have some sort of charm, right?

“I've been talking to your friends, Beomgyu.” Jaemin began. “They really miss both of you.”

“It's really sad to see…” Ryujin said. “The entire dynamic of your group seems incomplete without you two…”

“Hey, guys this might sound like a weird question...” Jaemin said suddenly, with a nervous expression.

“It's ok, go ahead.”Beomgyu said.

“We won't judge.” Soobin said.

“Ok…” Jaemin said, taking a deep breath. He glanced over at Ryujin, who gave him an encouraging smile. He turned back to the boys and continued.

“The five of you… Were you all friends from before?” 

Soobin's breath caught in his throat.  _ How could he know? _ Soobin wondered vaguely why he was even freaking out about Jaemin's astute observation. Anyone who saw the five of them and the way they treated each other would think that they were probably family friends or something. So Jaemin's observation wasn't all that weird, right? Still, for some reason, Soobin didn't think it was just an innocent question.

One glance at Beomgyu's face told Soobin that he wasn't the only one thinking along these lines. 

“How did you guess?” Beomgyu asked.

“Well…” Jaemin said, fidgeting with his hands. Another red flag for Soobin.  _ He looks nervous… Why? _

“You guys don't exactly act like people who have just met. And your entire demeanor together screams family dynamic. You all seem super fond of each other so I thought y'all might be childhood friends or something. Oh, and you all have matching bracelets!”

_ Ok, something is definitely up… He noticed our bracelets? _

Honestly, Soobin didn't even really know why he was being so suspicious, but something didn't seem right to him. Beomgyu laughed suddenly, drawing him away from his thoughts.

“You should join Soobin at the FBI. You're very perceptive!” He said.

Jaemin laughed as well, but now that he had said his piece, he seemed even more nervous, almost as if he had caught on to Soobin's doubts. Soobin stared him down and when Jaemin met his gaze, his expression changed. Soobin couldn't be sure but it looked to him as though Jaemin  _ really _ wanted to say something but didn't know how to word it. A few seconds later, their intense staring contest ended when Ryujin suddenly gripped Jaemin's hand. Jaemin visibly relaxed as he turned to face her.

“Anyways, guys I think we should get going.” Ryujin said, smiling and looking up. 

“Didn't you two take the day off? Why don't you stay a little longer?” Beomgyu asked.

“Oh, I wish I could but I have a few errands to run. Maybe next time!” She said, getting up from the couch and pulling Jaemin up with her.

“Bye Beomgyu, Soobin! It was nice meeting you both on better terms!” Jaemin said.

The two smiled and agreed and with that, their guests left and they were left alone once more.

“Please tell me I'm not the only one who found that creepy…” Beomgyu said, once they were alone.

“Nope, I felt it too. And I think he was going to tell us something else, but what?” Soobin said, gripping his hair.

“Well…” Beomgyu said, with a sigh. “Just one more thing for us to solve…”

“Maybe we're overthinking it?” Soobin said, but Beomgyu could tell he didn't believe what he was saying.

“Maybe… I guess we'll just have to wait and see…”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“They're both awake?” Taehyun asked, barely containing his excitement.

“Yes, sir.” The doctor said, a wide smile on his face. “They've both been complaining about how bored they are, so you boys better hurry on down there. Oh by the way, Kai…”

Kai looked up as his father addressed him.

“Beomgyu's wrist has healed. I'm very proud of you, you did a wonderful job.” He said, eyes crinkling as he smiled wider.

“Thanks Dad.” Kai said, returning the smile.

With that, the doctor took them down the hall over to Soobin and Beomgyu's room.

As they walked in, Taehyun chuckled upon seeing both of them sitting on Beomgyu's bed, staring blankly at some movie that was playing on the TV.

Soobin turned slightly to see them and his expression immediately brightened. He leaped off the bed, pulling Beomgyu along with him.

“Hey guys!” Beomgyu said as the boys came in for a group hug.

“Guys, you're both awake! Oh my gosh!” Yeonjun said, hugging the life out of both of them.

“Boys…” The doctor said, pulling their attention towards him.

“I just wanted to let you know, both of you will be discharged at 8 today…”

“YES!” Soobin yelled, pumping his fist in the air.

The doctor smiled and took his leave.

“Oh that's such a relief…” Beomgyu sighed, as the five boys settled themselves on the bed.

“Ya you guys will be at home in the next four hours.” Kai said.

“Which means we need to figure everything out before that time.” Taehyun pointed out.

The boys nodded. They were so excited to finally be five again, but they knew now was not the time for catching up. There were more pressing matters to discuss and they had to figure out why everything happened.

“Ok, so first line of action… What happened to Beomgyu and why?” Taehyun asked.

“Well… I'm thinking it's because maybe Soobin's power isn't meant to be used on humans. Remember in his dream, he only used it on animals…. Maybe human minds aren't made to endure magic?” Kai said.

His observation made a lot of sense, but again, why had Beomgyu been able to use his power on Soobin? Beomgyu glanced over at Soobin, but kept quiet. They had agreed awhile ago that they would tell the others their findings after the initial conversation was over.

“Either that, or Soobin Hyung was doing it wrong… Maybe there's a different method for charming humans?” Taehyun said.

Now that made more sense. Now that Soobin thought about it, animal minds seemed easier to access than human minds. Perhaps his magic had clashed badly with Beomgyu's inner workings and caused… Well, everything.

“Ok, I think that's all we can get for Beomgyu's situation. Now moving on, what happened to Soobin?” Yeonjun said.

“Ok, so basically we all know what happened to him physically. His air was cut off out of nowhere and it only stopped when his bracelet, which was glowing like crazy, was taken off.” Kai said.

“It was obviously a consequence of using his power on Beomgyu.” Taehyun said.

“In what way? You think the bracelet is handing out punishments now?” Soobin asked, incredulously.

“Well, it makes sense to me. It's like Kai said earlier. Maybe we aren't supposed to use our powers on humans and the bracelets are meant to prevent us?”

Soobin glanced over at Beomgyu. Beomgyu got the message and turned to the others, knowing that this was as good a time as any to tell the boys their new findings.

“Ok guys, we have to tell you something…”

Yeonjun nodded as if he was expecting this any second. Soobin supposed that he probably  _ had.  _ If their theories about the bracelets were correct, they should've glowed twice last night. Once when Soob remembered the fire and once more when Beomgyu unlocked his power.

“Firstly, did your bracelets glow yesterday night?”

“Yes, twice.” Taehyun said, confirming Soobin's suspicion.

“Ok well that's because Soobin Hyung had another dream…”

“And Beomgyu unlocked his power…”

Before the wide-eyed boys could question anything, Beomgyu quickly explained what had happened last night. He left out Soobin's dream because he still didn't know what it was about. When asked about it, Soobin said that he wanted to wait until the end to discuss his dream.

“Alright, but you  _ have _ to tell us later, ok?” Taehyun said.

“Of course.” Soobin said, with a nod.

“Anyways, I have a theory as to why nothing happened to Soobin when you used your power on him.” Taehyun began. “Maybe these things only happen if you use your power unethically. Charming is basically hypnotizing, and I think that falls under unethical. While Beomgyu was just transferring emotions to you.”

“I think that makes sense…” Kai said slowly. “I think we should keep that as our theory for now unless we're proven wrong. Now, I don't know about the rest of you, but I think we need to discuss the bracelets themselves.”

“Right, well, we know now that our theory was correct.” Taehyun said. “As we expected, the bracelets glow to signal a memory and the unlocking of a power. After the first use of the power, only one bracelet glows and that's the one that belongs to the person with the power. Oh and also only Soobin's was glowing when he… You know…” 

“So, I think by now we can assume that we all have powers that will be unlocked later on. So that would explain why  _ all _ bracelets glow when a power is unlocked. But what about the memories? Does this mean we're  _ all  _ capable of remembering things? Not just Soobin Hyung?” Kai asked.

“I guess we'll just have to wait and see…”

“Ugh, and I thought precalc was confusing.” Yeonjun said after a pause, running his hands through his hair.

“This is a lot…” Beomgyu said, his head in hands as well.

“If only we remembered things! None of this would be as confusing as it is!” Kai said.

“Speakings of remembering things…” Taehyun said, throwing a meaningful glance at Soobin.

“Right, if there's nothing else to discuss, I'll tell you guys my dream.”

The boys nodded confirming that they had exhausted all topics of conversation. Soobin took a deep breath before launching into the terrifying tale. He made sure not to leave out any details but also to tell it objectively so that their thoughts weren't affected by his own theories about the dream.

“Ok, so the only thing that's clear from this is that Soobin Hyung has water powers…” Taehyun stated.

“That makes sense! Remember in his first dream?! He was able to hold his breath for a long time and was able to match the dolphin’s speed for a long time.” Kai noted.

“Honestly, I think this dream just raises more questions, like does Beomgyu have fire power or not? Or did he just know something about the fire? Or maybe both?” Yeonjun said.

“Or maybe  _ I  _ caused the fire…” Beomgyu said in a low voice. 

This is exactly what Soobin feared would happen. There was evidence that  _ might _ point to Beomgyu being the cause. But from what Soobin had taken away, he believed that Beomgyu was trying to  _ prevent _ it from happening. After all, he had wanted to tell Yeonjun something moments before the fire had occurred. 

So Soobin told Beomgyu just that.

“You were trying to  _ save _ everyone from the fire, Beomie. At least that's what I believe.”

“It makes sense, Hyung. You tried telling us something before!” Taehyun said.

“Ya, I guess it does make sense…” Beomgyu said, his expression brightening. “But now I want to know how those girls got me out… Because they obviously did somehow cuz I wouldn't be here otherwise…”

“And neither would the rest of us…” Yeonjun said.

“Hey Kai, you haven't said a word since I explained my dream. Doesn't any of this confuse you?”

Kai let out a heavy sigh, lifting his head from where he had been staring at the bed. He looked like he hadn't slept in years and it broke Soobin's heart to see how  _ old _ he looked.

“The only thing that confuses me is… How could we forget such impactful moments? Why can't we remember anything? We've forgotten people we were friends with for God's sake! We- we didn't even remember  _ each other _ …” 

When Kai's tears made themselves known, it was clear that the conversation was over. His hyungs held him close and didn't say another word after that.

They didn't do much after that. They tried watching some movies and playing some video games, but the mood stayed gloomy.

Soon it was time for the boys to be discharged and the ride home was silent…

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Boys, what are you doing? You should be resting! Come on, back to Yeonjun's room.” Yeonjun's mother said, trying to herd both recently discharged boys back into bed.

“With all due respect, ma'am…” Soobin said, glancing up at the woman with pleading eyes. “We've been in bed for 3 days! I don't think I can stand it anymore…”

She exhaled through her nose, shutting her eyes, with her hands on her hips.

“Oh fine, I supposed you've had enough of lying around. But the other boys are busy with homework... What will you do?”

“We can help them… Or just wander around… Don't worry about us, we'll figure it out, Mrs. Choi.” Beomgyu said, smiling.

“Alright boys, but make sure not to overexert yourself, ok?”

Both boys nodded and sped off before she could say anything else. They went down to the basement, and looked around for something to do.

“Bro, what  _ should _ we do?” Beomgyu asked.

“Well, I explored the house on Tuesday when I was sick… We could do that… I could show you all the hidden rooms I found!” Soobin exclaimed.

And they did just that.

Soobin gave Beomgyu a tour of the basement and the main floor. They found Yeonjun and Kai in the living room, doing their homework. Or well, staring at it blankly, trying to gather the strength to actually do it…

“Hey, Taehyun can probably help you guys with that.” Beomgyu said.

“Where even is he?” Soobin asked.

“His mom had to talk to him, so they both went somewhere else just now.” Yeonjun explained.

The boys nodded and left the two of them to do their homework. Soobin continued his little tour and had Beomgyu look down at the rest of the house from the loft of the highest floor.

“Ah, cool…” Beomgyu said, with a grin. His entire face seemed to be glowing and Soobin could feel the relief at being home rolling off of him.

Soobin smiled as he watched him and was just about to say something when he heard voices from a room nearby.

Both boys stilled their breathing and focused their ears on the sound.

“Taehyun, it's the first week of school. Why are your grades already dropping?” 

That was Taehyun's mom. The two glanced at each other for a second before continuing to eavesdrop on the conversation.

“Mom, are you serious? Where have you been this entire week? Have you any idea what's been happening? I'm stressed, ok? Four out of five days I spent worrying my ass off, because two of my best friends were literally in the hospital! And you're  _ still _ bugging me about grades!? When is this going to end? When will you see me as something other than my straight A’s? When will you see me as a son?” Taehyun yelled.

“Keep your voice down, Kang Taehyun. And I  _ do _ see you as a son. That's why I worry about your future.”

“Stop worrying about my future self until you learn to worry about me  _ now! _ Do you have  _ any _ idea the  _ hell _ you and Dad put me through!?”

Soobin got the feeling that this conversation wasn't going to last any longer. He grabbed Beomgyu's arm and pulled him into a nearby room. He closed the door lightly and kept his ear pressed against the door.

“I thought this was all going to change! I thought you would finally leave me alone, but you won't!”

Soobin's suspicions were confirmed as not a second later, they heard the sound of a door slamming open, and footsteps storming down the hall. They didn't hear anything after that and when they were sure that no one was around, they slowly cracked open the door, and snuck out.

They went back downstairs after that, constantly searching for Taehyun, trying not to make it obvious. 

He wasn't with the other boys.

He wasn't in the den.

Or the kitchen…

Or the basement…

They finally found him outside, on Yeonjun's private balcony. He was sitting there, his arms folded, staring out at the blue sky.

Beomgyu realized, with a start, that he could feel every emotion around him with a stunning accuracy. And he knew exactly whose emotion was whose.

Soobin was nervous and worried as well as a little guilty for eavesdropping in the first place.

Taehyun was… All kinds of emotions… Sorrow at being yelled at… Frustration at the pressure… Anxiety … Sadness… Annoyance…Anger…

Taehyun turned his head, slightly, catching Beomgyu and Soobin's gaze. He didn't look at all surprised. His eyes were worryingly void of emotion, despite the obvious feelings Beomgyu was picking up from him. 

It suddenly occurred to him that Taehyun  _ wasn't  _ the most emotionally stable out of the five of them. It just seemed that way because of how well he hid his feelings from the rest of them. Hiding his worry behind logic, and his sadness behind acceptance…

If Beomgyu didn't have the power he did, Taehyun would've gone on hiding his emotions from them.

Beomgyu made up his mind to have a long talk with Taehyun later, but now was not the time for that.

“You heard?” Taehyun asked simply, breaking the tense silence.

Soobin nodded hesitantly, while Beomgyu stepped forward slowly and put a hand on his dongsaeng's shoulder. He willed his brother to be happier and at ease. Taehyun smiled and sighed as he felt a flood of emotions that weren't his, cloud his sadness. He figured he should be wary of the invasion of privacy, but instead he accepted the momentary relief that Beomgyu was offering him.

He trusted his brother and he knew of his good intentions.

He glanced upward to see both his hyungs smiling at him and noticed that only Beomgyu's bracelet was glowing this time.

“Only yours is glowing, Beomgyu Hyung. So far, so good for our theory.”

Both boys chuckled slightly.

“Tae, seriously, stop thinking for once and give your brain a rest. You deserve a break, too sometimes. Focus on the now and live in the moment.” Soobin said.

“Put aside your worries, cuz we live for today…” Taehyun said.

“Who said that?” Beomgyu asked.

Taehyun shrugged, a pensive expression on his face.

“I don't know… Just sounded right…”

Taehyun's eyes were bright and glowing now as they reflected the beautiful sky. The other two sat next to him and a few minutes later, Kai and Yeonjun joined them.

They asked no questions, just sat with their friends and the five of them watched the sun set that day. 

The end of that day felt like a new beginning and they each knew in their hearts that they would be ready for whatever was thrown at them next.

But for now, they didn't think about the future and put their worries aside.

Because as Taehyun had said, “we live for today…” 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyone who can guess where the chapter title is from will get a million bucks from me  
> JKJKJKJK🤣  
> But you will be my new favorite person🙂👍💜  
> 🤣🤣🤣  
> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	13. Your Eyes Hold The World

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyyy ppl  
> Hope everyone is safe and healthy!

Soobin would have loved to spend that night in the same peaceful silence they had all experienced on the balcony. But of course, the world seemed intent on thrusting all of his missing memories on him just when he felt that they didn't matter anymore.

He had never told anyone, not even his mother, but for the last seven years, it had bothered him so much that he couldn't remember anything about his life with his friends. He did his best to just forget about it and continue living his life, but something would always remind him of what he was forgetting. When he finally met his friends from so long ago, he thought that his missing memories didn't matter anymore. They could always make new memories together.

But obviously, it appeared that there was a lot more going on behind the scenes. And for some reason,  _ he _ was the only one remembering things. The others didn't have random memories coming back to them. Although, from what they had told him, it seemed that every time he relayed the dreams to them, it was as if a new puzzle piece had fallen into place and they would remember the event as vividly as if it had just happened yesterday.

Regardless of all the clarity that came back to them, they still weren't experiencing the dreams first-hand like he was. This was the third such dream and already, Soobin couldn't stand it. He just wanted a peaceful sleep, not these memories that didn't matter anymore.

But alas, they were important and he had been chosen.

And so he slipped into another cryptic dream for the third time.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Soobin was trudging through a snowy forest, fighting against the cold breeze blowing strongly against him. He threw an arm up in front of his face to block the incoming snow. Shivering, he pulled his jacket closer around his body.

He turned his head slightly, making sure the others hadn't fallen behind.

“Are you guys doing ok?” Soobin asked.

No one answered his question. They just kept their gazes on the snowy pathway. Soobin thought they must not have heard him and he was just about to forget it and turn back around when Beomgyu raised his head and shook it shortly, before looking back down.

Soobin frowned worriedly. Despite not being the oldest, he had been assigned the position of leader by his other hyungs. They had told him he was the best suited for this kind of task, because of his ability to remain level headed in tough situations.

He opened his mouth to say something, but Kai suddenly looked up, his gaze sharp and angry.

“I guess being outside is out of the question now, as well. We can't go home or we'll put our families in danger. Guess we're going underground, kids.” He said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Soobin sighed and stopped, inciting the rest of them to stop as well.

“Come on, guys… We can't lose hope. We can do this, just like we always do, ok?” He said.

Beomgyu shook his head again, but said nothing.

“Soobin… We barely got away this time…” Yeonjun said quietly.

“You know… I really thought the attacks would stop after the other hyungs took care of them. But they won't stop. What do they want from us? Why do they want us dead?” Kai asked, his desperate eyes pleading for anyone to give him an answer.

Soobin sighed, running a hand through his hair.

“Ok… So maybe… We could tell Namjoon Hyung?” Soobin was quickly getting overwhelmed with all this responsibility. Namjoon might be able to help come up with a solution to their problem.

At this, Beomgyu quickly shook his head, his eyes widening fearfully.

“Didn't you hear them? They'll attack everyone back at the island if we tell anyone!” He said.

Soobin sighed, dropping his head in his hands. He really was at a loss at this point. It really was up to him to fix everything now, wasn't it?

“Guys… Let's just forget about them right now…” Taehyun said, speaking up for the first time since they had stopped.

“They're not here anymore. They can't hurt us for the time being. Let's just destress and we can revisit this when our heads are clearer, ok?”

There was a collective sigh of relief as everyone nodded, agreeing with Taehyun's words.

“Have you found anything to distract us from this?” Kai asked.

“Yes, as a matter of fact, I have. I've sensed a frozen lake up ahead.” Taehyun said, grinning slightly.

“Have you sensed any signs of life?” Yeonjun asked, as they began following Taehyun's lead.

Taehyun shook his head.

“Nope, no humans at least. No spirits either. Just animals.”

Beomgyu sighed wistfully.

“If we find any spirits, we could ask them to contact Jaemin.”

“Pfft, you've never even met the guy, Beomie. Why are you always talking about him?” Kai asked.

“He sounds so cool in Lisa Noona’s stories. But more than anything, I just want to ask why he chose to leave his life on the island behind.”

“It was a strange decision, wasn't it?” Taehyun mused. “Anyways, we're here.”

The boys smiled upon seeing the large frozen lake. Kai stepped out onto the ice without a second thought. The rest of the boys were just about to follow suit, when Yeonjun caught sight of something that made him yell in panic.

“Look, it's their cat!”

The boys looked up to see a small black cat on the opposite side of the lake, creeping towards Kai slowly. It stared at the boy, eyes glowing, one blue, the other green.

The cat stopped and sat a little away from Kai, it's eyes glowing ever brighter.

And slowly but surely, the ice began to crack beneath his feet.

With a final shout of “HYUNG!”, Kai fell into the freezing water below.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Soobin awoke with a gasp, his eyes flying open, blinking at the blinding light of Yeonjun's room. They had all decided to sleep there instead of the den, since there were now several things they would need to discuss at night instead of sleep. In this way, they took care of the nosy moms.

Soobin shook his head confused.

_ Why had Yeonjun left his light open? _

Only then did he realize that it wasn't the room light that was on. It was the  _ bracelets. _ He looked up to see all of his friends staring at him wide-eyed, as the light slowly faded. Soobin laughed wryly. He was finally able to see the light this time, since he wasn't on the verge of a mental breakdown.

That meant he was getting used to the dreams.

Still, he was worried enough to immediately seek out Kai's hand and grip it tightly.

“What was it this time, Hyung?” He asked for the rest of them.

Soobin quickly explained the dream, thinking it over in his mind as he did so. There were several things he didn't understand as was the case with every dream. Who had attacked them in the dream? Were they still after them? Who was Namjoon? Why had that cat looked so familiar? What was this so called “island”?  _ And what was that about Jaemin? _

“JAEMIN!?” Beomgyu yelped, and Soobin realized he had been thinking out loud.

“We knew Jaemin before? Do you think he forgot us the way we did?” Yeonjun asked.

“No.” Soobin said, shaking his head. “We didn't know him personally. Remember, we only heard stories…”

“Do you think we should bring this up?” Taehyun asked.

Soobin thought about it and ultimately decided it was better not to bring Jaemin into this.

“It could've been someone else…” But even as he said this, he remembered how strangely observant the boy had been when he had visited him and Beomgyu at the hospital.

_ What if he knows something we don't? _

But he quickly dismissed the thought, sticking with his decision. He was glad to see the other boys nodding, agreeing with him. 

But he noticed Beomgyu's hesitation right away. He really hoped the boy didn't say anything to Jaemin until they knew more.

“Anyways, we have another potential power that will be revealed soon.” Soobin said, gesturing to Taehyun.

“Mhmm…” The boy said, nodding. “I think it's safe to say that we all have elemental powers at this point. But the question is, can you guys sense your elements like me?” He directed his question towards Soobin and Beomgyu.

Both boys shrugged.

“We haven't even tried accessing any of our powers. They just...come when they feel like it, I guess…” Beomgyu said.

“Well actually, you technically might have accessed them yourself. Soobin definitely did. He made a conscious effort to charm those animals. And for Beomgyu, he really just wanted Soobin to feel better, so he also kinda indirectly accessed it.” Kai said.

“So it's settled. I think we should try to access all powers we know of.” Taehyun said.

“Right, ok… If whatever was attacking us is still after us, I think that's the best line of action…” Soobin said.

“I'm kinda excited…” Yeonjun suddenly said, a small smile on his face.

The boys turned to him, incredulously.

“Excited? About what, Hyung? You don't even have your power yet, and besides that we might have some crazy lunatics after us!” Soobin said.

Yeonjun laughed, shaking his head.

“Not that! I've just noticed in your dreams… It seems we had a whole lot of other friends back then… I kinda wanna find them again… Like how we found each other… Maybe if we found them, they could make this less confusing. Maybe they know why we forgot everything…”

“ _ Or _ they forgot too…” Soobin said. He looked up to see his friends giving him dirty looks. He held his hands up in mock surrender. “Hey that's also a possibility! And a more probable one, might I add!”

“Always such an optimist, this one…” Kai said, rolling his eyes and smacking Soobin lightly.

“Yah!  _ ‘This one’  _ is your Hyung!” Soobin smacked Kai right back, and lay back down, deliberately turning away from all of the boys.

He heard them all break out into laughter, and he cracked a small smile. He was just about to turn around, when he saw Kai reach out from the corner of his eye, his hand outstretched towards Soobin's side, a devilish grin on his face.

Soobin gasped and tried to run away, but there was no running from Kai's tickle attack. He laughed and kicked and shoved but Beomgyu held him down as the other two joined in as well.

“Stop- please you're- you're torturing me!” Soobin said, tears streaming down his face as he laughed.

“That was the idea, Hyung!” Kai said, but he withdrew his hands and pulled Yeonjun and Taehyun away as well.

Soobin took a second to catch his breath before turning to smile at all of them.

“You guys really suck…” He finally said.

“But you love us.” Taehyun said, smiling.

“That I do…” Soobin said, returning the smile.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Taehyun blinked against the sunlight shining in through the window before slowly opening his eyes. He glanced behind him to see the rest of the boys sleeping. He decided he might as well sleep for awhile longer as well, but was suddenly struck by how silent it was in the house. He quickly dug his phone out from under the pillow and a recent text quickly confirmed his suspicions.

**Mom**

Yeonjun's mother thought you boys should sleep more. Come to the bakery as soon as you wake up. Bring the others.

Taehyun rolled his eyes. His mother's texts always seemed so robotic. Honestly, he wouldn't be surprised if it turned out one day that she  _ was _ a robot. Same goes for his dad. They seemed like the same person, just different genders.

He flopped onto his back staring up at the high ceiling. He wished his life was more like Yeonjun's. And Taehyun's life was almost exactly like his. His parents were well off. He had a house nearly as big as his Hyung's. The only thing he was lacking was real parents. He was the youngest of four boys and all three of his brothers had gone on to become everything his parents had wanted. 

It seemed that the only thing his parents valued was intelligence and nothing else. They would never talk to him unless it was school related. He bitterly remembered his conversation with his mom last night, the only time she really talked to him during their stay at Yeonjun's. He didn't count the time she had hugged him stiffly for show at the hospital when he had asked when they could visit their friends.

Taehyun shook himself out of his reverie and decided he'd better wake the rest of the boys up. He lifted himself off of the floor and looked towards Yeonjun's bed just in time to see Kai (who had claimed the bed in an intense game of rock, paper, scissors.) roll off the bed and fall right on top of Soobin who was lying next to it.

Soobin groaned and pushed the maknae off of him, smacking the boys shoulder for good measure.

Taehyun burst out laughing at the scene, making Soobin turn his head towards him and give him a tired smile.

“When did you wake up, Taehyunnie?” He asked, rising to his feet slowly.

“Just a couple minutes ago.” Taehyun replied.

Soobin nodded, before looking back at the still half asleep maknae. He twisted his face into a look of mock disgust and kicked the boy lightly.

“Hyuuuung, stop…” Kai muttered.

Soobin looked up at Taehyun and both began laughing again.

“Stop being loud, guys…” Beomgyu said suddenly, which only set the two off again.

“That's a bit much coming from you, Beomie.” Soobin said, smiling and moving closer to the boy.

Beomgyu shook his head, opening his eyes and turning his head towards his Hyung.

“Should I tell everyone how loud you were at the hospital?” Beomgyu said grinning. Soobin frowned and opened his mouth to object, but the previously sleeping Yeonjun was all ears now.

“Hm? How loud was he?” Yeonjun asked, voice heavy with sleep.

Beomgyu sat up, smiling.

“I couldn't get a wink of sleep when he was with me. He kept complaining about how bored he was. And he even spilled some of his secrets to me! Yeonjun Hyung, he told me he thinks you're super cool!”

Soobin pushed the boy hard, suddenly, his face burning red.

“I think you're all cool! It's not just him!” Soobin said, incredulously.

Yeonjun laughed, creeping closer to Soobin.

“Hey, it's ok to look up to your only Hyung. And for the record, you're not wrong, I  _ am _ super cool.”

“Ah, ok Hyung, but I'm still mad at Beomie.” Soobin said, refusing to make eye contact with Yeonjun.

“Hey, I just stated facts! Should I spill the tea on the others?”

“No! Hyung, tell him to stop!” Soobin said, finally looking at the boy. Yeonjun sighed.

“Beomgyu leave him alone.”

Beomgyu just smiled cheekily, but said nothing, despite Taehyun and Kai's protests.

“Thanks Hyung!” Soobin said, smiling at Yeonjun.

Yeonjun grinned, reaching up to ruffle the boy's hair.

“Anything for my super cool Soobinnie.” He said. Soobin blushed again, looking away once more.

“Alright, I hate to break up this love fest you two have going on here, but we have to get going.” Taehyun said, trying hard to hold in his laughter at his Hyungs.

Both boys looked up incredulously at that. Soobin shook his head as he got to his feet.

“I better not catch you clinging to Kai anytime soon, then, Tae… I'd hate to break up  _ that _ love fest. I don't know what you two have going on, but me and Yeonjun Hyung are just platonic soulmates, right Hyung?”

This time it was Yeonjun's turn to blush furiously, nodding slowly to answer Soobin's question. Taehyun and Kai suddenly decided to look anywhere but at each other, while Beomgyu cackled loudly at Soobin's words.

Soobin smiled smugly as he saw the others' reactions.

“Now, should we get ready, kids?”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Sadly, the boys made it to the bakery later than they had expected. Of course, they would have made it in plenty of time, had Kai not decided it was a good time for another impromptu tickle attack.

Nevertheless, the boys were happy to see that so many people had shown up for the grand opening. They had no idea what advertising techniques their moms had used, but whatever they were, they had worked.

They walked in together, smiling at the wonderful smells of pastries and sounds of laughter from the countless people inside. Soobin spotted his mom behind the counter, along with the other moms, and walked over to them.

“Hey, Mom! Great turnout! How'd you do it!?” He asked.

His mom laughed, her face shining. Yeonjun's mother came over and put a hand around her shoulder.

“Your mom here is a miracle worker! She won't tell us her techniques!” She said.

“A magician never reveals her secrets.” Soobin's mom said playfully.

The other boys joined Soobin at the counter just as Kai's mom came over to the front.

“Take whatever you want, boys! It's on the house!” She said.

“Oh no, we have money! I insist you treat us like normal customers!” Yeonjun protested.

“Oh, but you aren't normal, now, are you?” Soobin's mom said, her eyes twinkling mysteriously.

It might just have been Soobin's imagination, but he felt that his mother was trying to hint at something. And it wasn't the first time that he felt that she knew something about everything that had been happening to them lately. But she quickly said something that negated what he thought.

“You're all the sons of the best business women in the world.” She said, winking, before turning her piercing gaze on Soobin. He smiled nervously and nodded.

“Well…” He said. “At least let us stay and help the bakers in the back as payment.”

“That's up to you guys. If you want to, then sure. But I warn you, your homework better be done on time.” Taehyun's mom said, suddenly joining the conversation. 

“Alright guys, I'm gonna go find a table for us.” Taehyun said, leaving abruptly, not even acknowledging his mother's words.

Beomgyu and Soobin shared a worried glance, both remembering the conversation they had overheard last night.

With a final farewell to the mothers, the two followed Taehyun, leaving a confused Yeonjun and Kai at the counter.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Hey, are you ok?”

Taehyun lifted his head up at the sound of Beomgyu's voice. He saw both Beomgyu and Soobin sit down at the table, worried gazes fixed on him. He sighed, looking down at his hands.

“Ya I'm fine… She didn't even say anything big. I'm normally good at ignoring her… Maybe I'm just worked up from yesterday…”

Soobin hummed in understanding.

“Do you wanna talk about it?” Beomgyu said, trying to encourage him to talk about his feelings. 

Beomgyu could feel the hopelessness rolling off the boy in waves and he was getting increasingly worried at just how many feelings Taehyun hid from them. Beomgyu was tempted to touch the boy and will his sadness away, but he knew all too well that ignoring your feelings wouldn't help in the long run. He wanted the boy to come to terms with his feelings and deal with it that way.

However, Taehyun merely shook his head.

“Not right now… Maybe later…”

Soobin and Beomgyu nodded and didn't push it.

Before long, Yeonjun and Kai joined them, their arms filled with bags of muffins, brownies, cakes, and a whole bunch of other pastries.

The three at the table grinned and didn't waste any time digging in.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

After they were finished eating as much as they could, the boys decided to help out in the back for a couple hours. The bakers were super nice and mostly just gave them easy jobs like fetching things from the pantries. Even after all boys had insisted that they could do more than just that, the workers merely smiled and waved them off.

“Hey, Yeonjun-ssi?”

Yeonjun turned his head towards the woman calling him.

“Yes?” He said, rushing over.

“Could you please grab ice cream from the freezer?”

Yeonjun nodded, grinning, his head filling with thoughts of ice cream cake. He left quickly to retrieve the ice cream.

He entered the pantry and located the freezer. The big metal door was heavier than he expected, but it was nothing Yeonjun couldn't handle. He pulled it open and walked inside the huge walk in freezer, leaving the door slightly ajar as he searched the shelves for ice cream.

He hummed a happy little tune under his breath as he wondered which flavors he should get. 

_ Should I just bring them all? _

He wasn't sure he'd be able to carry them all, so he made a split second decision and decided to call the others to help him. 

But before he could go anywhere, a chill suddenly ran down his spine and it had nothing to do with the temperature in the freezer. Yeonjun turned his head sharply, feeling as if someone was watching him. He stilled his breathing and focused but the room was silent.

And then, he heard a slight creaking and a loud thud, and lastly a lock clicking into place.

Yeonjun whipped his head back towards the door, his eyes widening when he saw it was shut.

He crossed the room in two strides, fingers wrapping around the door knob, twisting and turning only to find that it was locked.

_ What the heck? _

Yeonjun was suddenly aware of the fact that he had left his phone outside and was now stuck in here until someone noticed he was missing. He pounded his fists against the door, relentlessly, but it seemed like no one heard him.

It almost felt like his voice was being snatched away as soon as it left his mouth.

Yeonjun backed away from the door after what felt like an hour but was really only 5 minutes. He leaned against the shelf, willing himself to stay calm and try not to think about how it seemed to be getting colder by the second.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Hey, Hyung?”

Soobin turned from where he was working at the shelves. Kai was standing a little away from him, looking nervous but determined.

“Yes, Kai?” He asked, moving closer to him.

Kai opened his mouth and quickly closed it again, glancing around nervously. He grabbed Soobin's hand and began pulling him towards the main sitting area.

“Let's go outside for a sec.” He said.

Soobin frowned in confusion, but allowed the boy to pull him out of the kitchen. He smiled nervously at the moms behind the counter as Kai continued leading him to the very back of the bakery.

“Ok…” Kai muttered, letting go of Soobin and turning around to face him.

Soobin titled his head expectantly.

“I just wanted to ask what happened to Tae yesterday…”

Soobin sighed, remembering the events of yesterday clearly. Sure, it might be personal, but Soobin didn't think Taehyun would be mad if he told the others. After all, they weren't going to do anything with the information. He could deal with his situation whenever and however he wanted, but having moral support made all the difference.

And so Soobin quickly recapped the discussion he and Beomgyu had overheard last night. By the time he had finished, Kai's eyes were wide with sympathy and sorrow for their friend.

“Does Yeonjun Hyung know?” He asked, after several seconds of silence.

Soobin shook his head, no.

“We should go let him know too.” Soobin said, heading back towards the kitchen with Kai following him.

They ran into Beomgyu and Taehyun who both looked confused at their grave expressions.

“What's up?” Beomgyu asked cautiously.

“Ah, it's nothing.” Soobin said, smiling at the boys. “We're just looking for Yeonjun. Do you know where he is?”

Taehyun shook his head, looking distressed.

“We were just going to ask you the same thing.”

Soobin frowned in confusion. 

“We've looked everywhere…” Beomgyu said.

Without another word exchanged, Soobin began pacing the entire kitchen, despite Beomgyu's protests that they had already searched. 

“Hyung, I found his phone.” Kai suddenly said, lifting it over his head.

Soobin glanced at it quickly and decided to change tactics. He walked over to one of the cooks and tapped him on the shoulder.

“Excuse me… Have you seen Yeonjun?” He asked once the man had turned around.

The man shook his head, giving a sympathetic look. 

“Maybe he's outside?” Taehyun suggested, and began heading out.

The other boys followed him all the way outside, but didn't even get to search for a minute before the boy suddenly gasped and rushed back inside the bakery. 

“Taehyun, where are you going!?” Kai yelled as they all chased after him. They chased him all the way back through the kitchens, to the pantry, until he stopped in front of the freezer.

“He's in here!” Taehyun yelled, triumphantly waving them over.

Soobin noticed the glow around his wrist and grinned realizing what had happened. Taehyun's ability to sense life forms had just been unlocked.

Taehyun unlocked the door and tugged it open. Yeonjun, who had been sitting with his back pressed against the door, tumbled out. He looked up to see his friends staring down at him.

“Oh my god…” he muttered, dragging his hands down his face.

“Alright, stand up, kiddo.” Beomgyu said, grinning, as he gripped the boy's arm and pulled him.

“W-who are you calling k-kiddo?” Yeonjun muttered, irritated, his teeth chattering as he shivered uncontrollably.

Soobin fought the urge to laugh as Yeonjun curled in on himself, looking at the freezer as if it had betrayed him.

“Alright, Beomgyu, take him out front and ask the moms if they have any spare sweaters in their cars.”

Beomgyu nodded, pulling his Hyung along. Kai and Soobin went to follow, but Taehyun stayed put.

“Hyung…” He whispered. Soobin turned back as the others continued walking and looked at Taehyun with a puzzled expression.

“What's up, Tae?” He asked, walking back over to the freezer. Taehyun was standing just inside it, looking at something on the wall.

Taehyun beckoned him closer, pointing at the wall. Soobin came to stand beside him and looked up to see a thermometer mounted on the wall just next to the door.

“The temperature is turned  _ way down _ .” Taehyun muttered darkly. “And I don't think Hyung did it himself.”

Soobin looked down at him, worry in his eyes.

“Is that how you found him? You could sense the ice or something?” He asked.

“That and I could also sense  _ Yeonjun.  _ Like… His life force or something. And what's more, I knew something was wrong… I couldn't sense his emotions like Beomgyu Hyung… But I could tell he was in some kind of danger…”

Soobin hummed in response, not really knowing what to say. It seemed the more they came to know, the more confused they became.

“Something is still after us, Hyung…” Taehyun said.

Soobin sighed, nodding.

“It would seem so… But we shouldn't panic… Let's just… Forget about it for now. We can discuss more tonight.” Soobin said.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Hey, Beomie, need help?”

Beomgyu turned to see Kai standing next to his mom's car, leaning against it.

“Yes, please.” Beomgyu said, gratefully. “You don't happen to know where your mother keeps your sweaters, do you?”

Kai laughed, moving away from the car and helping Beomgyu search for the sweaters in the trunk.

“Not really. She's super prepared but not very organized. That's why she needs Dad.” Kai said.

Beomie laughed at that.

“Maybe not very organized, but I'm super thankful for her preparedness. She has everything someone would need in an apocalypse.”

“Hopefully, we never need that stuff.” Kai said, only half joking.

“Aha! I found one!” Beomgyu exclaimed, pulling a blue hoodie out from the mess inside the trunk.

Kai grinned, pulling the trunk door shut as his Hyung skipped back towards the bakery.

“Hey! Wait up Hyung!” He yelled, rushing to catch up.

He would have been able to catch up to his Hyung before he made it to the door, had something small and black not darted into his path making him stop abruptly.

He gasped, nearly falling forward, but catching himself just in time. He blinked in shock, looking down at what had blocked his path so suddenly.

A small kitten stood there, looking unbothered as it licked its paw. A few seconds later, it put its paw down and stared up at Kai curiously.

Kai found himself entranced by the cat and its jewel toned eyes. What was even stranger was that the cat's eyes were not the same color. One was a deep blue and the other forest green.

Kai grinned, putting his hands out in front of him. The cat observed his hands for a while, before leaping into his open palms. A giddy feeling in his chest, Kai carefully patted the cat's small head, as he stood up and ran inside to show his Hyungs.

“Guys, look what I found!” He yelled, pushing the door open.

All four of his Hyungs were gathered at the farthest end of the bakery. They were huddled around Yeonjun, who was still shivering slightly, now wrapped up in a warm sweater and Taehyun's tight embrace.

Yeonjun, Beomgyu, and Taehyun all glanced at the cat, smiling at their maknae, as he continued to play with it.

“Let's take it home!” Beomgyu said.

“No.” Soobin said, suddenly, crouching down to glare at the cat. Kai looked shocked as he looked up at the stormy expression on his Hyung's face.

“Why not?” He asked, confused.

“I know this cat. It's the one from my dream.” Soobin said, standing and looking at everyone surrounding the cat.

“Maybe it's a different cat, Hyung. Maybe it's just like… The same breed?” Taehyun suggested.

Soobin shook his head firmly. 

“I know what I saw.”

Kai frowned and bent down to pick up the cat.

“We shouldn't touch it!” Soobin said. “It could be dangerous!”

“What are you talking about, Hyung? It's harmless!” Beomgyu said, incredulously.

“Besides, you can always charm it, r-right?” Yeonjun spoke up.

“Oh yeah…” Soobin said, sarcastically. “Like I wanna risk almost  _ dying  _ again.”

“Well, if it's evil, your charming wouldn't be unethical, right?” Taehyun pointed out.

Soobin sighed, rolling his eyes, as he ran a hand through his hair.

“Fine, y'all win…” He muttered.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Soobin sat silently on Yeonjun's bed, watching Beomgyu play with the cat on the floor. He had decided to call it Iris and was now trying to ask the cat its gender.

“You're definitely a boy, right?” Beomgyu cooed, rolling a little rubber ball towards it. The cat gazed thoughtfully at the ball before pouncing on it and watching it roll away again. It continued the cycle making Beomgyu smile like crazy.

As Soobin continued watching wordlessly, his indifferent expression slowly turned into one of recognition. When he saw it in his dream, he had the feeling that he had seen it before somewhere. He had only just remembered where else he had seen this cat. He saw it on Tuesday when he had stayed home and unlocked his charming power for the first time. After charming the squirrel and bird, he noticed a stray cat staring at him intently, its eyes glowing as if it held all the world's secrets behind its multicolored irises.

Soobin hadn't thought much of it before and had charmed it as if it was just any stray cat. But now he knew better.

He shook his head against the thoughts.

_ Am I seriously suspecting a cat right now? _

_ I must be losing it… _

With a heavy sigh, he decided to drop it. Maybe the others were right and it just looked similar.

Slipping off the bed, he sat next to Beomgyu, watching the cat do what normal cats do. Beomgyu turned and smiled at him.

“The cat won't bite us, Hyung. Don't worry.”

Soobin smiled and nodded, but remained silent.

The other three came in a while later, carrying a variety of junk food in their arms. They dumped the bags of cookies and chips on the mattresses and blankets on the floor.

They talked and laughed for a good portion of the night, playing with Iris and trying to feed it snacks. Taehyun glanced over at Soobin, the question clear in his eyes.

Soobin looked over at Yeonjun, who was happily playing with Iris, a carefree smile on his face. Soobin didn't really want to make that smile disappear by telling him about what he and Taehyun had discovered.

He turned back to Taehyun and slightly shook his head no. Taehyun nodded back, turning back to his conversation with Kai.

Soobin sat back, eyes locking on to Yeonjun and Kai. He knew that his next dream would be about one of the two.

Strangely enough, he found himself anticipating the dream this time.

The more puzzle pieces, the better.

Once they had all of them, maybe they would be able to see the bigger picture.

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	14. The Truth

“Soobin? Soobin… Are you in here?”

Soobin lifted his head from his textbook, looking up at his mom tiredly as she peeked in through his bedroom door.

She smiled sympathetically.

“Having trouble?” She asked, as she walked over to stand next to him and peer at the book with him.

“Among other things…” He groaned, dropping his head back on his desk.

“Are you missing the others already? We've only been home for barely two days! You'll see them tomorrow, Binnie!” His mother said, barely suppressing a laugh.

Soobin glared up at his mom, neither confirming or denying her statement. Honestly, she was right and he was kinda annoyed that she had caught on. 

They had all gone home for the weekend and Soobin really hadn't realized how lonely it was without them. He loved being with his mom, he really did. But after being in a house with 9 other people constantly surrounding him, he noticed for the first time how empty their place was with just him and his mom.

His mom sighed suddenly, leaning away from him and reaching a hand out.

“Come on. Let's go take a walk.” She suggested.

There was honestly nothing better for him to do at that point, so he hesitantly took his mom's hand and let himself be pulled out of the confines of his room.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

They talked about the most useless things ever as they walked aimlessly down the path of their local park.

Soobin had to admit, it  _ did _ feel pretty good to be out and about. And the smiles and greetings thrown their way by all the other strangers really helped slightly alleviate the heavy lonely feeling in his heart.

That's one thing Soobin really hated about moving, despite how much he assured his mom he was fine with it. Everyone was a stranger and he basically had no friends, save the four boys.

When it was just the four of them, he felt like they were enough, but now he realized how much nicer it felt being surrounded by more people.

He would definitely try and make more friends as the school year went on.

His smile dropped a little as he realized there was a time when he  _ did _ have way more friends. He just didn't remember them…

“Binnie? You there?”

“Hm?” Soobin asked, forcefully turning his attention back to his mom.

“What's on your mind kiddo?”

Soobin hummed thoughtfully, pondering what exactly he should say. His mom had shown on more than one occasion that she might know more than she was letting on.

Glancing at his mom for a second, he decided to go ahead and ask a potentially dangerous question. After all, the worst that could happen was her denying she knew anything about it.

“Mom… Does the name Lisa mean anything to you? Did you ever… Know someone by that name?” He asked, watching her closely.

There it was again. That recognition and almost-panic in her eyes. And a second later it was gone. Replaced with a surprisingly convincing confusion as she met his gaze.

“Hm? No? Why do you ask? Is she a friend of yours?” She asked, turning her gaze back towards the path in front of her.

But Soobin just shrugged, muttering, “no reason…” And leaving it at that.

If she wasn't going to say anything, neither was he.

“Anyways…” His mom said, continuing the conversation like nothing happened. “Have you made any other friends at school? Other than the boys?”

“Hmmm… I guess I've made one other friend… If Jaemin even counts…” Soobin mused.

“What? What did you say his name was?” His mom asked, suddenly stopping and turning to face him.

“Um, Jaemin?” Soobin replied, slightly shocked by her sudden behavior. What was even more suspicious was that she had that glint in her eyes again. The one she had when he asked about Lisa.

“Ah, that's a nice name…” She said, the expression disappearing without a trace once more, as she continued walking.

“Let's go back now, Soobin. What do you say?”

Soobin nodded wordlessly, not missing the way she was avoiding his eyes.

She definitely knew something.

And Jaemin probably did too.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

That night, Soobin wasn't even surprised as he was dragged back down into a memory-dream.

The dream began in the most normal setting yet. A small playground just outside a huge house. Soobin and Kai sat on a bench, staring emotionlessly at Yeonjun who was sitting on a swing, staring at the ground.

“Soob… Come push me…” He muttered, but his voice lacked any sort of emotion.

“No…” Soobin sighed. “Kai, you do it. With your telekinesis…”

Kai shot him an annoyed glare, but the swing began to move obediently.

“I really hope… They're going to be ok…” Yeonjun said. 

They sat in silence for awhile before Soobin spoke up.

“I- I could've saved him… I don't understand… Why didn't they trust me with that? I mean why assign me the leader position if…” He trailed off, his expression dropping further.

Kai glanced over at him, putting an arm around his shoulder and pulling him closer.

“I may not be Taehyun, but I know what you're thinking, Hyung. And I want you to stop thinking it.” he said.

Soobin shook his head, not meeting Kai's eyes.

“I'm so bad at this… I don't know if I can do it anymore…”

A hand settled on his shoulder prompting Soobin to lift his gaze. Yeonjun stood there, looking down at him.

“Everything is going to be ok, Soob. I can't say much to cheer you up, but this is the one thing I know for sure. One day… Everything's going to be ok…”

Soobin stared at him until his vision became blurry with tears. He dropped his gaze, letting the tears fall silently onto his lap.

“I miss my mom…” He whispered.

He felt Yeonjun settling down beside him.

“Same…” He agreed.

Soobin hastily swiped the tears away, clearing his throat, and glancing back at the towering house behind them.

There was no use crying about these things anymore. There was no guarantee they would ever get to go back home. And so he should worry about proving his position as leader and suck it up.

“I wonder how long their meeting is going to last.” He muttered.

“Lisa noona is so annoying. I don't understand why we can't be a part of their meetings. Considering the attacks are always centered on us. You'd think it would be important for us to be there.” Kai complained.

“Hyung…” He said, turning to Yeonjun. “Do you think you could get one of your little animal friends to sneak in and tell you what's happening?”

Yeonjun laughed incredulously.

“ _ No, _ not when I'm so drained. We just escaped a burning building not 3 hours ago!”

“Ah, right…” Kai muttered, turning away sheepishly.

“Hey kids!?”

All three boys turned at the sudden slightly panicked voice. A boy who looked a little older than them was running out of the house, turning his head this way and that, searching for someone.

“I think we're the kids…” Soobin sighed, standing up and gesturing for the others to do the same.

“Soobin?! Yeonjun!?” The boy yelled again.

“We're over here!” Yeonjun shouted, taking a few steps towards him.

The boy whipped his head around, relief washing over his face as he caught sight of the three kids.

“Ah, you're here…” He said, walking towards them quickly.

“Here…” He says, holding something out in the palm of his hand.

“Oh! Our bracelets!” Kai said, happily reaching forward to grab his.

“I thought these were gone for good…” Yeonjun muttered, taking his, while Soobin took his wordlessly.

“The girls found them outside the school. You must have dropped them.” The boy explained.

“Tell them thanks for us… I didn't catch your name?” Soobin said, glancing up at the boy.

“Ah, I'm Jaemin…” He said with a grin.

Kai gasped at that, eyes alight with excitement.

“No way! Jaemin, the  _ spirit rider?! _ ”

“Yup, that's me. I've been told to take you guys home.” Jaemin explained, a smile on his face.

“But… What about Tae and Beomie Hyung?” Kai asked, the excitement falling from his face instantly.

“They'll come later with someone else.” Jaemin said.

“But are they ok?” Soobin questioned.

“Well, I don't really know…” Jaemin said, dropping his gaze. “Jimin and some others are with them right now and they won't let anyone inside.”

He became quiet for a second, before looking up at the three boys, his expression bordering on sadness and pity.

“Also… Everyone wanted to say bye… And sorry that things had to happen like this…”

The boys shared a look, confused. Jaemin was speaking like they weren't going to see each other for a long time.

“What do you mean, Jaemin?” Soobin asked.

But Jaemin only shook his head, no longer looking them in the eyes.

“Let's get you guys home…” He said simply, the words heavy as if it took all his effort to say them.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Whaaaat?!” Kai yelled, drawing out the word as his eyes widened in shock.

Beomgyu gasped, slamming his locker door shut as he turned to face Soobin.

“We knew Jaemin! Confirmed!” He said.

“Um, you mean  _ we _ knew him.” Kai said, throwing his arms around both Yeonjun and Soobin. “You and Taehyun Hyung were sleeping.”

“ _ Not _ sleeping.” Taehyun pointed out. “Unconscious and suffering.”

“Mhm.” Kai said, smiling widely. “Same thing.”

“But listen.” Yeonjun said, breaking away from Kai suddenly. “You said he looked older than us? Does that mean he's not a student here?”

“I guess not…” Soobin said, dropping his gaze as his mind ran through the dream once more. 

“Then what is he doing here if he's not a student…?” Taehyun muttered.

“I don't wanna jump the gun, but… We're really the only reason he'd be here…” Beomgyu said.

“Um, not necessarily…” Yeonjun said.

“Ya, we can't be that important. Besides if he came for us, I doubt our first meeting would be so… Unpleasant…” Soobin said.

“Maybe he didn't recognize us at first. His entire demeanor  _ did _ change after the first meeting.” Beomgyu said.

“Hmm, still. We shouldn't do anything. If he  _ is _ here for us, let's wait for him to make the first move. If he knows us, he should also know we have little to no memories, so he can't expect us to bring it up.” Soobin said.

“Right, ok.” Beomgyu agreed.

“Also, there wasn't any mention of these two having an elemental power?” Taehyun asked.

Soobin shook his head.

“Does that mean our theory is wrong?” He asked, brows furrowing as he frowned.

“Maybe? Let's just wait it out and see.” Soobin said. “Anyways, we should get to class. Come on, Beomie.”

Beomgyu obediently took his Hyung’s hand, waving at the others before continuing towards class.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Beomgyu’s first two classes were pretty uneventful. In fact, they were  _ so _ uneventful that he fell asleep a couple of times. It had nothing to do with the fact that he couldn't sleep at all the previous night.

He had gotten pretty used to his parents shouting matches in the middle of the night, but a week at Yeonjun’s place had all but destroyed that tolerance.

And when Beomgyu didn't get sleep, he tended to get irritated and angry more easily. So he didn't take very kindly to Soobin constantly waking him up every time he dozed off.

“Would you just let me sleep?” He hissed, glaring at his Hyung who sat across from him.

Soobin frowned threateningly, unphased by the boy's expression.

“Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know  _ you _ were also suffering sleepless nights because of strange dreams of your past where you and your friends are almost always in certain danger…” He muttered, sarcastically.

Beomgyu's frown fell, realization sweeping over him.

“Ugh, sorry Hyung…” He said, dropping his head on the desk. “I just-”

He stopped short as Soobin gently took his hand in his own. He looked up slightly to see Soobin staring down at him in concern.

“Do you wanna talk about it?” He said, softly. 

Beomgyu sighed heavily, looking away.

“My parents were fighting again…”

“About?”

“Me…” He risked a glance at Soobin, but his expression remained as understanding as ever.

“My dad was yelling at my mom about her messed up priorities. About how she should have taken better care of me, rather than waste time at the bakery. It was kinda funny, considering he never bats an eye in my direction unless he's got something to yell at me about. My mom told him as much…”

“I'm really sorry, Beomgyu. I know I can't relate at all. But if it makes you feel any better, my mom is being super creepy lately…”

“Huh? How's that?” Beomgyu asked, looking up in confusion.

Soobin smiled at his flustered expression and went on to explain every instance where he felt like she knew something.

“I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree…” Beomgyu muttered. “You  _ both _ should join the FBI…”

Soobin covered his mouth with his hand, trying to muffle his laughs. Beomgyu flashed him a smile, before he pushed his chair back and stood.

“I'm gonna go get some water. Thanks for listening by the way…”

Soobin waved him off, and with a final smile, Beomgyu left the room.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Beomgyu sighed as he roamed around the halls, not wanting to go back to class just yet, knowing that the bell would ring any second now.

He wouldn't admit it to anyone, not even himself, but maybe a  _ tiny _ part of him was wondering if he might stumble upon Jaemin so he could finally say something. 

He knew everyone had agreed on letting him approach them first, but Beomgyu had a feeling Jaemin wouldn't say anything unless he absolutely _ had  _ to.

“Let me go!”

Beomgyu gasped, wrenched from his thoughts by an all too familiar voice. He quickly rounded the corner, running towards the voice.

Another gasp left his mouth upon seeing a tall boy he had never seen before towering over Taehyun, gripping his wrist tightly.

“I bet you cheated you little brat!” The boy shouted.

“Not everyone has to resort to that! Now let me go!” Taehyun yelled, struggling against the boy's iron grip.

Beomgyu’s eyes narrowed as he began to walk towards the boy, blocking out everything around him. He didn't even pay attention to Taehyun as he caught sight of him, telling him to stay out of it.

“Let him go.” Beomgyu said, simply as he stopped in front of the boy. 

The boy laughed loudly at that, gripping his wrist even tighter.

“Or what?” He taunted.

“Let go…” Beomgyu said in a low voice. “Before I make you…”

That set the boy off again, laughing so hard that he doubled over, his other arm around his stomach.

“Are you hearing this kid?” He asked, turning his head as two other dangerous looking kids came up behind him.

“He doesn't know what he's talking about.” One of his friends said, snickering.

That was it. Without a second thought, Beomgyu reached up, wrapping his own hand around the boy's wrist. He didn't do anything else, just held his hand there and glared threateningly at the boy.

“Really kid? I'm about to die of fear.” The boy mocked.

“Good…” Beomgyu muttered, and without even thinking about it, he willed every ounce of fear he could into the boy's heart.

The boy's taunting smile faltered, his grip loosening suddenly.

“Hey kid… Let me go…” He said, voice no longer carrying that infuriating sarcasm.

“No…” Beomgyu said simply.

“Hey kid, I was just messing. I won't bother you anymore. Tell your friend to let me go.” He said, addressing Taehyun as he let go of his wrist

Taehyun simply glanced between the two, worry in his eyes.

“Don't talk to him. Talk to me.” Beomgyu ordered.

“Hey bro, what's wrong with you?” One of the boy's friends said.

“Ya man are you really taking his shit right now?” The other one said.

Beomgyu had had enough. He let go of the boy, glaring at him.

“Leave.” He said.

“Come on guys, let's get out of here.” The boy muttered, dragging his friends away despite their protests.

Beomgyu was so caught up in his anger that he didn't notice the bell had already rung. Several students were walking around, glancing at him and muttering things.

“Um, did he just stand up to that guy?”

“I'm kinda impressed…”

“What's his name?”

“Beomgyu, Taehyun? What's going on?” 

Beomgyu jumped as Soobin’s voice cut through all the noise. He turned to see Yeonjun and Kai huddled behind Soobin, all three looking worriedly at him.

Taehyun gripped Beomgyu’s arm suddenly.

“Hyunh,  _ please  _ tell me you didn't just do what I think you did…”

“I- I don't know…”

Before anyone could say another word, an hand suddenly grabbed Beomgyu's shoulder, shoving him backwards. Beomgyu gasped, staring up at Jaemin in shock as he continued to grip his shoulder.

“Jaemin? W-what are you doing here?”

Jaemin didn't respond, he simply glanced down at the boy's wrist, before suddenly yanking off his bracelet.

“Get this off before you get in trouble…” He muttered.

He then grabbed Beomgyu's hand, bringing it closer to him and dropping the bracelet in his palm. Without another word, he began to walk away.

“Wait! What the heck, Jaemin?!” Beomgyu yelled.

“Jaemin, you can't just do that without explaining!” Soobin said.

Jaemin stopped in his tracks and turned his head, staring at the five confused boys for a while before finally speaking.

“Meet me on the rooftop during lunch. I'll explain then.” 

Then he turned back around and walked off, leaving the shocked boys in his wake.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Well, his first move was definitely theatrical…” Kai muttered.

“Where the heck is that kid? It's been almost ten minutes already!” Soobin groaned.

“And  _ you! _ ” Soobin shouted suddenly, rounding on Beomgyu who was standing near the door clearly waiting impatiently for Jaemin.

“Why did you do that!?”

“Do what?” Beomgyu muttered, irritated.

“You  _ know _ what I'm talking about! Why would you use your power like that? If there's even the  _ slightest _ chance of it being unethical, you could cause a scene at school! If Jaemin hadn't come when he did, you could have gotten hurt!” 

“I know, I know… But I didn't know what else to do at the time. Taehyun was in trouble…”

“I appreciate you worrying about me, Hyung.” Taehyun said. “But I don't think supernatural powers are the way to do things.”

“Shh!” Yeonjun shushed everyone suddenly. “I think I heard something.”

“Ya, that was me…”

All the boys whipped their heads towards the sound, catching sight of Jaemin leaning against the railing surrounding the rooftop. He stood there, nonchalantly, as if he didn't just manage to get on the rooftop without using the stairs.

“What the heck?” Yeonjun muttered. “How did you do that?”

Jaemin sighed, moving away from the railing and walking towards them, gesturing for them to settle down.

“Everything will make sense soon.” He said, sitting down in front of the boys, looking at them as if seeing them in a different light. He could tell that the feeling was mutual.

“But before I tell you about myself… It's about time you guys learned the truth about  _ yourselves… _ ”

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stay healthy!
> 
> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	15. Inside My Head (Too Many Qts.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow it's been over a month... 👀  
> I'm so sry for the wait but lmao I'm back now! If u read my skz fic I said that I've decided to focus on only this fic for the rest of the month so hopefully I can make up the missed time.  
> Btw how r we feeling with the super dark teasers? I for one do expect to survive this comeback...  
> Anyways, onto the chapter!

The boys all leaned closer to Jaemin, eager to finally learn the truth about themselves. Jaemin sat silently for several seconds, when suddenly his intense expression dropped, destroying the tense mood.

“Wait… I just realized… I can't tell you  _ everything… _ ” He said, trailing off.

“ _ What?! _ Why not!?” Beomgyu demanded.

“Look, please listen.” Jaemin said, raising his hands in an attempt to quell the anger radiating from the boys. He stood up slowly, watching as the others rose to their feet as well.

“I'm just… A kid like you guys, ok? There are people above me who are trying to figure out what to do and I can't tell you certain things until I get the ok from them…” He spoke slowly, as if trying not to give too much away.

“So here's what we can do… You guys can ask me anything and I'll answer if I can… Ok?”

Jaemin glanced up to see all five boys glaring at him with barely suppressed anger.

“Jaemin, I think we have a right to know  _ every single detail _ . Me and Soobin almost  _ died _ in this mess!” Beomgyu yelled.

Jaemin sighed heavily, dropping his gaze and gripping his head.

“I know, I know guys and you're  _ right. _ I'm so so sorry, you have no idea. But like I said, my hands are tied.” Jaemin said, his voice barely a whisper.

Soobin glanced over at his friends, flinching at the annoyance in their gazes. Soobin was just as annoyed as them but something told him that Jaemin wasn't lying. And Soobin definitely didn't want Jaemin to get in trouble for telling too much.

“Alright, Jaemin. But you have to promise you'll tell us the full story at some point. We deserve to know.” Soobin said.

Jaemin nodded right away.

“Of course, I wouldn't dream of holding it back from you guys. Once we've figured it out, you guys will know everything.”

“Ok guys?” Soobin said, turning back to the others.

They still looked irritated but gave him stiff nods in response.

“Ok so…” Taehyun said as they all sat back down.

“I think the best way to do this is to tell you all of our theories so far and you can tell us if we're right or not.”

They started off by telling Jaemin all about what they thought the bracelets meant. He listened patiently the entire time, a thoughtful expression on his face as they took turns telling him the situations and theories.

“Ok, so you guys were right about the ethics thing. Which is why I made you take your bracelet off earlier, Beomgyu. But it seems as if you guys had already figured that out because of what happened to Soobin.” Jaemin said. “What did you guys make of Beomgyu’s situation?”

“Just that Soobin Hyung was either doing it wrong or his power was never meant for humans.” Kai said.

“Hmmm, well…” Jaemin muttered, looking deep in thought. 

Soobin could tell he was trying to figure out whether or not to tell if they were right. Finally he sighed and nodded.

“He was doing it wrong. Your charming can be used against humans as well if you can learn how. But of course, even if you do, your bracelet would prevent you.”

Soobin nodded in understanding. He had already decided he never wanted to use his powers against anyone ever again. He glanced over at the others to see that they were also in agreement. He thought he caught Yeonjun frowning slightly, but a second later it was gone.

“Ok, and what about the dreams Soobin has been having? Are the bracelets also connected to those?” Beomgyu asked.

Jaemin shook his head quickly.

“No, the bracelets are only there for your powers.” He said firmly.

“Are you sure?” Yeonjun asked, frowning. “The bracelets always glow whenever he has a dream…”

“What were the dreams about?” 

“Our powers.”

“I rest my case. The bracelets have nothing to do with the memories.”

Soobin frowned, not fully satisfied with the answer but didn't press the topic.

“Ok and why do we have powers in the first place? And why did we forget everything?” Kai asked.

“I can't say anything about the forgetting. Trust me it's for your own good.” Jaemin said, a solemn expression on his face.

Although irritated at the lack of information, the boys didn't bother him about it and moved on.

“About the powers…” Jaemin sighed. “Well, as you probably know by now, you guys are different from normal humans. People like us have been around for ages but no one knows how or why we exist, just that we do. Some people keep their magic subtle while others choose to use them as they please. But since they know that it could be dangerous for them, they tend to remove themselves from human society and live with others like them. I used to be like that a while ago but I came back.”

“You came back? Why?” Beomgyu asked.

“Personal reasons… Um, I used to live with a whole bunch of other people and they created their own society. There were some things about that place that I didn't like so I left.” Jaemin said, shifting uncomfortably.

“Another society…?” Taehyun said thoughtfully. “Hey Hyung, could it be that island? In your dream?”

“What island?” Jaemin asked, frowning. “There's no island.”

“Really?” Soobin asked, turning towards him. “There was an island in my dream though…”

“Well, I don't know about it.” Jaemin said, his frown growing deeper.

“Hmmm, ok then…” Soobin muttered. 

After that, they told him about Soobin's dreams and while he listened attentively, his expression was anxious. Every time they asked about one of the people they had met or heard about, he denied their existence.

“I don't know any of those people.” He said, sternly every time.

Soobin was seriously annoyed at this point. Jaemin had basically only confirmed what they already knew. But he knew it was no use to try and pry the answers out of him.

“Alright fine, now tell us about yourself.” Beomgyu said.

“Ah, that's something I can do.” Jaemin said, grinning. “I'm a spirit rider. I have a whole bunch of powers related to interacting with spirits and stuff like that. I can ask them to teleport me to places. That's how I got up here so fast.”

“What? There are spirits in the school?!” Kai asked.

“Oh yeah, there are spirits everywhere…” Jaemin said, as if it was the most normal thing in the world.

“So does Ryujin know about you?” Beomgyu asked. “ _ Or wait! _ Is she also magical like us?”

“She knows about me… She's not… Well… It's complicated. I can't really say anything on that. It's not my place, you know…” He said apologetically.

“But anyways!” Jaemin said, clapping his hands excitedly. “I wanted to tell you guys about your  _ own _ powers. So tell me what powers y'all have so far.”

“I can charm living beings, Taehyun can sense life forces, and Beomgyu can sense and change emotions.” Soobin said. “We know of a few more, but haven't actually used them.”

“Ah ok… So I'll spare you the suspense and just tell you guys all the powers you have.” Jaemin said.

The boys all leaned in closely, eager to hear what else they could do. Soobin was beyond irritated at the fact that he knew everything about them but wasn't willing to tell how and why he knew. And the fact that he knew all of their powers, but wouldn't tell them why they had forgotten about them really bothered him. 

But he reeled it in and decided to just take what he was getting.

“Soobin, besides your charming power, you can also control water. As I'm sure you already know, because of the dreams.” Jaemin said.

Soobin nodded, confirming his statement.

“You also have enhanced hearing and the ability to manipulate sound…”

Soobin sat back, humming thoughtfully.

“So basically…” Yeonjun said. “If he were a murderer or something. He could easily make sure no one heard the screams.”

Soobin glanced over at him in alarm, surprised by the dark example he had given. But Yeonjun’s expression remained innocent. No one else seemed bothered by it though.

_ I must be overthinking it… _

Soobin shook his head and brought his attention back to the conversation.

“Yes, he could.” Jaemin said, nodding. “But of course, the bracelet would stop him.”

“Right, that…” Yeonjun muttered.

“Ok moving onto you, Yeonjun. You have the ability to control wind and understand animals. Ah, and you also have telepathy powers.”

“Oooohh cool! So I can talk to the guys during school even if we're in different classes?” Yeonjun asked, a wide smile on his face.

Jaemin laughed, nodding as Yeonjun turned his excited gaze to the others.

“You won't be so lonely in class anymore, Hyung.” Beomgyu said, slinging an arm around his shoulder.

“Alright, Beomgyu, your turn.” Jaemin continued. “We already know you can sense and manipulate emotions. But you can also manipulate and even  _ erase _ memories. Besides that, you also have super strength and the ability to control fire.”

“Oh wow…” Beomgyu said, eyes widening in awe. “So I could help someone erase all their bad memories? Or if they've been made to believe lies I can manipulate those?”

“Yup.” Jaemin confirmed.

“I probably wouldn't do that though… Forgetting things really doesn't help in the long run.” Beomgyu said, solemnly.

“That's true…” Jaemin said, dropping his gaze.

Soobin could tell he was really feeling guilty about not telling them everything. As he realized that, his irritation towards him slowly started to disappear. Jaemin had said it before. He was also just a kid like them, caught up in this mess.

“Hey, don't feel bad Jaemin. It's not your fault.” Soobin said, softly.

Jaemin sighed, nodding and lifting his head.

“I know… One day I'll tell you guys everything ok?”

The boys all nodded, trying to convey that they believed him and didn't blame him in the slightest.

“Anyways…” He said, clearing his throat and turning his attention towards Taehyun. “You have the ability to read minds, control ice and sense life forces. You also have x-ray vision and basically just enhanced sight in general.”

“Ok so I have a question about the life force thing…” Taehyun said. “I can sense if they're in some sort of trouble, yes?”

“Yes, that's right. Why? Did you guys have an experience with that?” 

“Well, sort of… Yeonjun Hyung got stuck in a freezer and I could tell he was in trouble…”

“You got stuck in a freezer?” Jaemin asked, turning towards Yeonjun. “How on Earth did that happen?”

“We don't know.” Yeonjun said, shrugging. 

Taehyun glanced over at Soobin, eyebrows raised. Soobin could tell he wanted to ask if someone or something was out to get them, but wasn't sure if he should bring it up. Soobin thought about it for a few seconds before nodding subtly. It was in their best interest to get all questions out right now.

“Hey Jaemin… There's nothing… After us? Is there?” Taehyun asked carefully. “Soobin had a dream about something like that… And we think that whatever was in the dream could still be after us.”

Jaemin frowned deeply as Taehyun posed the question.

He shook his head slowly.

“No…” His voice was laced with confusion. “If there was something after you, I'd be the first to know…”

Soobin frowned slightly. His trust in Jaemin was slowly dwindling. He had no doubt that Jaemin wanted to tell them the truth but at this point, Soobin really didn't know what to believe.

“Alright then…” Taehyun muttered, his expression matching Soobin's.

“Ok, last but not least…” Jaemin said, turning to Kai. “As of right now, you have telekinesis and Earth powers. You probably have more, but no one could learn about them before….”

He trailed off, gaze dipping back towards the ground.

Beomgyu frowned in concern. He didn't like the quilt he felt from Jaemin but what was even more concerning was the unshakable fear. Throughout their entire conversation, Beomgyu could feel the fear coming off of him in waves and it made him think that there probably was a lot of dangerous stuff Jaemin was holding back. 

But rather than press the topic, he decided to change the subject.

“So Jaemin, what exactly are you doing here? You're not here just because of us right?”

Jaemin lifted his head, grinning in amusement.

“No, no. I'm a teacher's assistant here. It's another job I've taken in addition to the Best Buy.”

“Oh?” Beomgyu said, surprised. “So everything you told me back at the hospital was true?”

“Yes, of course…” Jaemin said, expression falling. “I'm not lying to you guys I promise. I'm just telling you what I can. I really hope you can trust me…”

“Are you really telling us everything you can?” Kai asked. “Cuz I don't believe for a second that you're just here as a TA. There's just too many coincidences.”

“You're right…” Jaemin said, sighing. “ The main reason I'm here is because I was told to keep an eye on you guys and train you to use your powers once you had unlocked them all. Turns out I had to step in earlier. So there you have it. I'm your magic teacher.” He said grinning.

“Oh nice!” Beomgyu said.

“Hey, that's actually kinda cool. I'm excited.” Taehyun said, smiling as Kai gave him a five.

“It's cool, right Binnie?” Yeonjun said, turning towards Soobin with a smile on his face.

“Hm? Oh yeah…” Soobin muttered, trying to smile back.

He understood the boys’ excitement of course. It's not everyday that you find out you're a magical being and that you're going to learn how to use magic. 

But as Soobin glanced over at Jaemin who was currently talking and laughing with the others, he couldn't help but feel there was something big happening beneath the surface.

Some ulterior motive.

Because he was sure his memories didn't lie. And Jaemin had denied too many things that he was sure must be true.

His only option at this point was to somehow find out the whole truth either through his mother or his own scattered memories.

  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know if this has been specified yet but... Jaemin is older than all of them in this.
> 
> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	16. The Practice Room Ghost

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was supposed to be up yesterday...👀  
> But I was too busy freaking out over the teaser😅

Soobin sat on his bed, his back against the wall as he typed away on his laptop trying to finish an essay that he knew wasn't due for another two weeks. It wasn't the best option, but Soobin was willing to do anything to distract himself from the countless thoughts running through his mind.

Soobin had the tendency to overthink a lot of things and it was pretty obvious when he was doing it. He had already been questioned several times by his friends and even Jaemin. Every single time he had brushed it off. Right after school ended, Beomgyu had come to him saying that he needed to stop freaking out and that he could feel his anxiety from across the hall.

Soobin had just barely made it out of school without getting a full blown interrogation by him.

It wasn't any easier to deal with when he got home either, his eagle-eyed mother immediately noticing something was off.

He had told her he was stressing about his essay and had rushed off to work on it. Thankfully, she had left him alone and now he was trying hard to stay focused on the meaningless words in front of him.

But no matter what he did, he couldn't help but keep turning Jaemin’s words over and over in his mind. Was he telling the truth? Was he lying?

Another thing he couldn't seem to get out of his mind was Yeonjun's dark comment and how he had seemed resentful about the fact that the bracelets prevented unethical things. 

No one else seemed bothered by either of those things which only strengthened Soobin's belief that he was thinking too deep into it. Well, he decided, he could probably forget about Yeonjun's strange behavior. He was probably just stressed about the entire thing as a whole.

He could trust his Hyung, but he still couldn't trust Jaemin.

Still, everyone else seemed to be taking all the confusing information in stride so why couldn't he?

A buzz suddenly sounded in the silent room, making Soobin flinch as he snapped back into the present. He stared at his laptop screen for a few seconds before sighing in frustration and setting it aside.

Running a hand through his hair, he reached forward to grab his phone as it buzzed again. He opened it and eyed the screen curiously.

**[Beomie added you to a chat with 3 others]**

**[Beomie changed your name to Binnie Hyung]**

Soobin frowned in confusion as he typed out a question and sent it.

**Binnie Hyung:** what's this for? Don't we alrdy have a grp chat?

**[Beomie added Na Jaemin]**

**Beomie:** it's for magic skl!😃

**Tae:** what

**Na Jaemin:** um what is this

**[Beomie changed the group chat name to ✨Hogwarts✨]**

**Kai: 🤣🤣🤣** YES

**Jun Hyung:** oml Beom🤣

**[Beomie changed Na Jaemin's name to Professor Jae📚]**

**Beomie:** EVERYONE CLAIM UR HOUSES! IM GRYFFINDOR!

**Professor Jae📚: 🤦🏽🤦🏽🤦🏽**

**Kai:** I'm Hufflepuff!

**Binnie Hyung:** me too!

**Tae:** I'm ravenclaw

**Jun Hyung:** I'm Slytherin😈

**Tae:** expected

**Jun Hyung:😈😈😈**

**Professor Jae📚:** I am also Slytherin😈

**Beomie: 👀👀**

**[Beomie changed Professor Jae📚’s name to pRoFeSsOr SnApE😈]**

**pRoFeSsOr SnApE😈: 🤦🏽🤦🏽**

**Beomie:** embrace it🙃

**pRoFeSsOr SnApE😈:** ugh fine… tUrN tO pAgE 394😈😈😈

**Tae: 🤣🤣**

**Binnie Hyung:** LMAO🤣 

**Beomie:** omg I just noticed. 394? 9 ¾? Rowling rly only knows those 3 numbers lol😂

**Jun Hyung:** 3 deathly hallows?👀

**Kai:** 4 houses?!👀👀

**Binnie Hyung:** 9 WeAsLeYs?!😱

**pRoFeSsOr SnApE😈: 😱😱😱**

**Tae:** r we rly going to ignore the fact that there r 7 horcruxes? And 7 books?

**Kai:** pretty sure there were 9 books…

**Tae:** r u kidding me rn?😑

**Jun Hyung: 🤣🤣**

**pRoFeSsOr SnApE😈:** Focus children! What is this for again?

**Beomie:** magic skl bro. So we can figure out how this is gonna work

**pRoFeSsOr SnApE😈:** ah right… So like when do y'all wanna start?

**Kai:** um like ASAP?!

**Tae:** I'm cool whenever. I'll just tell my parents I'm at tutoring or smth

**Jun Hyung:** that's a good cover. We shud all say we going together so our stories match and stuff

**Binnie Hyung:** ya ok

**pRoFeSsOr SnApE😈:** ok so like tmr is Tuesday. Tmr after skl? 

**Tae:** wait but where is this gonna happen?

**pRoFeSsOr SnApE😈:** I was thinking we could use my dance studio

**Beomie:** boi u take dance classes? Just how much stuff r u doing? And would u even be allowed to use it

**pRoFeSsOr SnApE😈:** yes I do too many things🤦🏽 ya my instructor is pretty chill. He always lets me use the practice room after hours

**Tae:** ok so tmr after skl?

**Jun Hyung:** I'm cool w that

**Kai:** yup

**Binnie Hyung:** same

**Beomie:** I'm down! C y'all tmr I gotta get going

**Binnie Hyung:** same bye guys

  
  


Soobin sighed as a stream of “byes” were sent to him. He turned off his phone and threw it on his pillow. He lay down on his side, staring off into space as he thought about what tomorrow would bring.

He lay there for what felt like hours, his eyes growing heavier as time went on. He was almost on the verge of sleep when suddenly the sound of his door opening jolted him awake.

“Soobin? Are you asleep?”

Soobin internally sighed at the sound of his mother's voice. He really hoped she wasn't here to interrogate him. He flinched as he felt the bed dip as his mother sat next to him.

“I know you're awake Soobin…” She whispered.

Huffing in protest, Soobin rolled over to glare at her.

“Just barely…” He muttered.

Grinning, his mother reached up and ran a hand through his hair.

“I just wanted to know how my Binnie is doing. You seem like you're stressed about something.”

“Well, school exists… That's why I'm stressed.”

“You never used to get so worked up about school before…”

“Well, things change…” Soobin muttered, throwing an arm over his eyes.

“Come on baby… Tell me what's really wrong…” His mother said, gently moving his arm to look him in the eyes.

Soobin stared at her, seeing the concern in her eyes. Guilt slowly began trickling into his heart as he realized she was truly concerned for him and wasn't here to grill him about Jaemin or the boys.

“It's really nothing Mom… I promise I'd tell you…” He said, sighing, as he told the lie.

True, she was concerned and it made Soobin feel bad. But he wasn't about to divulge sensitive information.

“Is it not about school? Did you fight with one of the boys? Or that other friend of yours… Jaemin?”

Soobin frowned as the name fell from her lips, in an infuriatingly confused tone. Soobin was a fool to believe she came here because she was truly concerned for him. Well maybe that was a bit too harsh, but he should've known the ulterior motive.

She knew something was up as soon as he had first mentioned Jaemin's name and she was just waiting to bring it up again.

Well, two could play at that game. He knew exactly what she was trying to do and he wasn't going to give her what she wanted.

If she wanted to know about Jaemin, he would tell her about Jaemin, but it wasn't going to be what she wanted to hear.

“No, no nothing like that…” He said, slowly. “Jaemin would never fight with any of us. He's a really nice guy, you know?”

“Hmmm, that's not what I've heard about him. Isn't he the one who hurt Beomgyu?”

“All a misunderstanding…” Soobin said, airily. “They've made up since then and now they're the best of friends. You should see them at school. They're the most chaotic duo.”

“Is that so?” She muttered, eyes narrowing slightly.

Soobin grinned internally, thoroughly enjoying the fact that he had complete control over the conversation. She would only ever know what he wanted her to know about Jaemin.

“Mhm. He even stepped in when Beomgyu and Taehyun were being bullied today.” A little white lie, but it didn't matter in the long run.

Soobin easily put out the small spark of guilt that came with lying to his mother. He just kept his main goal in mind, his mother must never find out about the situation they were caught up in.

He watched in satisfaction as his mother's eyes widened slightly, the suspicion in her gaze slowly melting away.

“Wow, really?” She whispered. “I'm going to be honest I didn't expect that from him.”

“And why is that?”

“I don't know.” She shrugged, looking sheepish. “I always had a bad feeling about him since the incident with Beomgyu. Maybe I judged him too harshly.”

“I probably shouldn't be telling you this…” Soobin said as he got ready to seal the deal with Jaemin's sad family situation.

Something inside told him he ought to keep the information to himself. Jaemin hadn't even told him directly, Soobin had just figured out the gist of it and once he had, Beomgyu told him the rest.

Beomgyu had sternly told him not to tell anyone, but what harm would there be in telling his mother? She wouldn't tell anyone.

“What is it?” His mother asked, intrigued.

“You can't tell anyone, Mom.” He said, sternly.

“Of course, I wouldn't dream of it.”

“Promise.”

“I promise.”

With that out of the way, he told her the gist of Jaemin's story. How his parents had died and how his adoptive family treated him.

How he only had his girlfriend and one other person to call family.

And now he had the five of them.

Soobin watched as the last of the apprehension died in her eyes, her expression turning into one of sadness and pity. Soobin frowned as something in her gaze shifted. It looked almost as if she was under a hypnosis spell.

“That's so sad. I feel so bad for misjudging him.” She whispered.

“It's ok, Mom. We felt the same way before we got to know him.”

His mother nodded, seemingly in a trance as she got to her feet and began to leave.

“Well, I should get going now, Binnie.”

“Oh, by the way, me and the boys are staying for tutoring tomorrow. And Jaemin's coming with.”

“Of course, of course. Sleep tight, Binnie.”

And with that, she left the room. Soobin frowned, confused at her strange behavior towards the end of the conversation.

He thought about it for a while before shaking his head and assuming she was probably just tired.

That is, until he turned onto his side and saw something that changed everything.

His bracelet was glowing.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The entire next day, Soobin went through the motions as if in a trance. He kept thinking about what had happened last night with his Mom and what it could possibly entail.

He toyed with the idea that he hadn't _actually_ charmed her, but then what had happened? That was the only reason his bracelet would be glowing.

As soon as he had realized it was glowing, Soobin had wrenched the bracelet off of his wrist before it could choke him again.

He slept in fits the entire night, his sleep surprisingly quiet. And that was another thing that bothered him.

Were the dreams over? Did that mean he wouldn't be able to remember anything else?

Jaemin must have been right then. The dreams were only for the powers.

Still, it didn't sit right with him. It almost felt like the calm before the storm.

He had woken up that morning, reluctantly putting his bracelet back on before stepping out of his room and into the kitchen, only to come face to face with his mother.

She had smiled brightly, not bringing up anything from the previous night. It almost seemed as if she had forgotten what happened, a confused frown on her face when he mentioned he'd be home late.

“Tutoring?” She had asked, to which Soobin nodded confusedly.

He really hoped he hadn't done any permanent damage to her brain or anything. His mother wasn't one to forget things so easily.

“Hey, what's wrong with you Hyung?”

Soobin snapped back to the present, turning to see Beomgyu's concerned gaze on him.

“Hm? Nothing's wrong…” He muttered, unconvincingly.

“Don't give me that Hyung. You've been spacing out all day. You better straighten up if you don't wanna be questioned at lunch.”

“It's not that easy, Beom…” Soobin grumbled, irritated.

“I know Hyung…” Beomgyu said softly. “I'm just kinda worried. I was talking to Jaemin yesterday and even he said you seemed off. Everyone's worried about you.”

Soobin sighed heavily, dropping his head onto the table.

“Well, yesterday it was just everything Jaemin had told us. I didn't know whether to believe it or not.” 

Soobin purposely left out the bit about Yeonjun's behavior. He had long since decided there was nothing to worry about there.

“And? What about today?” Beomgyu questioned.

“I didn't have any dreams…” Soobin said slowly. “It feels strange. I don't like it.”

Beomgyu hummed in response.

“Why does that bother you?”

“It feels like the calm before the storm, you know? I just feel anxious… And also… Something happened with my Mom…”

“Is she ok? What happened?” Beomgyu asked in concern.

“She's fine.” Soobin was quick to reassure. “But I think I may have… Accidentally… Charmed her…”

Beomgyu's eyes widened, remembering what had happened to him when Soobin had tried that.

“Oh God…”

“No no, nothing happened to her. Like she was completely fine. She just seemed off…? Like she was hypnotized or something.”

“Oh…” Beomgyu sighed, his expression relaxing.

“But the thing is, I didn't even hum the tune or anything. I was just telling her why Jaemin was nothing to worry about and she believed me.”

“Are you sure you charmed her?” 

“Yes, my bracelet was glowing. I took it off right after because… You know?”

Beomgyu nodded solemnly.

“Anything else seem strange?”

“Oh right. She didn't seem to remember our conversation from last night.”

“That's weird…” Beomgyu said, dropping his gaze. “When are you planning on telling the others?”

“I was thinking when we have our magic class today. I wanted to ask Jaemin what it meant.”

“Right ok. I'll keep it quiet until then.”

“Thanks so much Beomgyu. I can always trust you to listen.” Soobin said, gratefully.

“No problem.” Beomgyu said with a grin. “Just try not to worry too much. Your emotions are overwhelming.”

“I'll try…” Soobin said.

“Now get some sleep. You look like you haven't slept in ages.”

And Soobin did just that.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The rest of the day passed by pretty uneventfully. Ryujin and Jaemin had dropped by during lunch to let them know the address of the dance studio they would be meeting at later.

Soobin was surprised that Ryujin would be joining them and asked Jaemin if she knew everything about them like he had. At that, Jaemin had said something quite shocking.

“Ryu? She probably knows more about you guys than me.”

Soobin had wanted to ask more, but the bell signalling the end of lunch stopped him.

Soobin had been doing pretty well at masking his feelings but something about that statement made the anxiety come rushing back. His mind began turning every single thing over again, making him space out several times. Yeonjun had tried to get him to focus and tell him what was wrong.

Soobin brushed it off every time. Out of all his friends, he trusted Beomgyu the most with his innermost feelings. Besides he didn't want more people worrying over him.

Yeonjun ended up leaving him alone and writing his notes for him, promising that he'd explain it to him later.

After school ended, the seven of them walked the short distance to Jaemin's dance class building.

Jaemin led the way to the empty and spacious room and finally they were all gathered in the middle, sitting on the floor in a circle. Ryujin sat on one of the benches off to the side, watching silently

“Ok! Hello everyone! I'm super excited for this and I hope you guys are too!” Jaemin all but squealed.

“Apparently not as excited as you…” Beomgyu muttered.

“Haha, very funny, Beom… I guess this class doesn't need to exist.”

“Just kidding, Jae! We're all very excited, right boys?!” Beomgyu said, laughing.

Everyone screamed yes in response, big smiles on their faces.

“Ok, so here's how this is gonna work…” Jaemin said, smiling. “I'll help each of you with one of your powers individually first. And then we'll pair off and practice with each other. Ryujin will step in if any of us need extra help.”

Jaemin glanced up at Ryujin who was working on some assignment and occasionally looking over at the boys.

“Hey Ryujin, why don't you sit with us?” Jaemin asked.

“Missing me already?” She asked, smirking as she came to sit beside him.

Jaemin scrunched up his nose in mock disgust.

“Never mind, you can go back…” He muttered.

Ryujin frowned while the others tried to hold back their laughs at the couple's playful banter.

“Anyways, focus kids.” Jaemin said, turning back to the others.

“Before we start, are there any questions?”

Beomgyu glanced at Soobin, the message clear in his eyes. Soobin raised his hand nervously. Jaemin nodded at him.

“Um… It's not a question… I just wanted to let you guys know that I charmed my mother last night…”

Taehyun gasped, a hand covering his mouth. The others more or less had the same reaction.

“Is she…?”

“She's fine.” Soobin said, answering Taehyun’s question. “But it was strange…”

Soobin summed up what he had told Beomgyu earlier that day. He watched as their expressions became as confused as he felt.

Jaemin stayed quiet throughout it all, a thoughtful expression on his face.

“Ok, well then… Here's what we'll do. I'll pair off with Soobin first. And Ryujin… You can handle the others for a few minutes right?” Jaemin asked.

Ryujin nodded, taking the others to one end of the room while Jaemin took Soobin to the other end.

“Alright, now…” Jaemin turned to face him. “Tell me… Did you really charm her on accident? Or did you have the intent in your mind?”

Soobin shook his head firmly.

“I wasn't even thinking about it.”

“Hmmm, ok… And you said you didn't hum the tune you normally do…”

“Ya… I thought maybe the tune only works with animals?”

“No no the tune works on both. But it's not necessary with humans. It makes the connection better and the hypnotism easier to keep. But as you saw, the tune isn't necessary. In fact, if you use the tune for a prolonged period of time like you did with Beomgyu, it can have bad effects. So normally one would hum the tune, then tell the person lies or tell them what to do…” Jaemin said, thoughtfully. “What I'm trying to figure out is how you managed to do that without intending to. Mind powers normally require a lot of focus.”

Soobin stood there anxiously, as he tried to think back to his conversation with his Mom. But no matter how much he thought, it just wasn't coming to him. He really hadn't even thought about charming at all.

“Aha!” Jaemin said suddenly, snapping his fingers. “Did you ever feel a sense of control? Like you were ‘in control’ of the situation?”

Soobin nodded.

“There you have it. Your power requires a lot of focus on how to control a situation. You were trying to hide something and the only way you could do that was to control the conversation. You unconsciously used your charming to your advantage. Also you don't need to worry about your mom. The most that'll happen is that she'll forget your conversation last night.”

Soobin nodded once again, sighing as he dropped his gaze. He'd have to be super careful in the future. He didn't want to hurt anyone like he had Beomgyu.

“Needless to say, you're going to have to be careful in the future.” Jaemin said, as if reading his thoughts. “But I think you're well past rookie mistakes.”

“What? I haven't even used my power like that since the incident with Beomgyu…”

“But remember, this isn't the first time you're using it. Even if you don't remember them, your past experiences are going to make it easier for you to pick up the skill.”

Jaemin glanced over at his shoulder for a second.

“It looks like Ryujin has already paired off the others. We should get started.”

“Get started?” Soobin said, nervousness lacing his voice.

“Mhm…” Jaemin said, turning back to him. “I'm going to teach you how to charm properly.”

“I'm gonna have to charm you…?” Soobin asked, already knowing the answer.

“Yes. But don't worry… Being a spirit rider means mind powers don't hurt me. They'll only work if I let them. For the purpose of this lesson I'm not going to resist but as we progress I will and we'll see how you deal with resistance.”

Soobin didn't know why but Jaemin's words filled him dread.

Jaemin looked up at him with a smile, completely oblivious to Soobin's discomfort.

“Let's begin shall we?”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

After about half an hour, Soobin had successfully managed to make Jaemin believe a series of lies he had told him. For at least five minutes, he had convinced Jaemin that his name was actually Changbin and not Soobin. It took some time to reverse the effects but he eventually got it.

A headache was slowly building behind his eyes but he ignored it for the time being.

“Good job Soobin! That was pretty good. For next time, you don't have to reverse it. I can do that on my own.”

“ _Now_ you tell me…” Soobin muttered, leaning against the wall next to him.

“Already tired?” Jaemin asked, coming to stand next to him.

Soobin nodded wearily, pressing his palms against his head.

“Don't worry. Your stamina will get better if you keep trying.” Jaemin said as he moved away from the wall to stand in front of him.

“Come on, let's go again. Make me believe something else. Once you get the hang of that, you can start trying to get me to do things.”

Soobin groaned as he looked at Jaemin.

“Already? Can't we take a break? My head is killing me…” Soobin whined.

“No breaks. Look how hard the others are working.”

Frowning, Soobin turned his head and squinted to see Kai with a hand lifted high up in the air. About a foot above his hand hovered his cellphone. The others stood around him, excitement on their faces as they hyped him up.

Kai grinned as the phone slowly descended into his palm, everyone cheering him on.

“You see? Kai's almost got his telekinesis down!”

“Ugh, fine…” Soobin muttered, moving away from the wall.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It was almost an hour later when Jaemin finally called for a break for everyone. As everyone began to leave the dance room to get some fresh air, Soobin simply slumped into a nearby bench.

“Hey, you sure you don't wanna come with us?” Jaemin asked, as he moved towards the door.

Soobin shook his head, watching as Jaemin made his way to the rest of the boys.

Once the room was empty, Soobin sighed, running a hand through his sweaty hair. His eyes caught on his reflection in the mirror covering the opposite wall. He looked absolutely drained, but he was proud of the progress he had made.

Soobin frowned suddenly as a concerning thought crossed his mind. He had noticed throughout the practice that Jaemin also looked like he had just run the mile. He had told Soobin that he wouldn't feel any bad side effects from his charming…

Maybe he was lying? Maybe he was simply just tired?

Soobin had tried bringing it up, but Jaemin brushed it off.

Sighing, Soobin closed his eyes, body and mind much too tired to focus too much on that right now.

He hadn't meant to, but as he sat there waiting for his friends, he let darkness cloud his mind as he gave into sleep.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A shiver ran through Soobin's body, effectively shaking him from his sleep. He slowly opened his eyes, blinking tiredly before frowning at how dark it was. Only one light was open in the vast room and the lighting was dim, preventing him from seeing more than a few feet in front of him.

He glanced out a window, surprised that the sky was already quite dark.

Yawning, he decided to go look for his friends so they could leave.

But as he stood, his eyes landed on the mirror once more. He could make out the figure of his own body but what startled him was the reflection of _another_ dark figure standing quite close to him.

Eyes widening, he turned his head towards where the figure should be but there was nothing there…

A terrified gasp left him, and just as he was about to scream in fear, all the lights flashed open.

Soobin blinked against the harsh light, eyes catching Jaemin standing in the doorway. He looked worried and absolutely exhausted.

“Hey Soobin… You look like you've seen a ghost… Are you ok?”

Soobin gulped, moving forward to meet him at the door.

“Well, that's what it felt like… But I must have imagined it…” Soobin muttered.

Jaemin let out what sounded like a forced laugh.

“You just woke up so maybe it followed you out of your dreams. Don't worry kid, spirits are real but ghosts aren't.” 

Jaemin winked at him as he began walking out.

As Soobin followed him out, he frowned, thinking that he really didn't believe Jaemin's words.

For one, Soobin hadn't dreamt of anything.

And for another, Soobin definitely hadn't missed the way Jaemin's eyes had settled on the exact spot where the figure should've been before looking worriedly at him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If it wasn't obvious before, I hope y'all know now that I'm a complete Harry Potter nerd🤣  
> Also I have an exam in less than an hour wish me luck😭
> 
> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	17. An Omen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's only a few hours left you guys, I'm so hyped

As Soobin stepped into his house at around 6:30, he couldn't help but notice how quiet it was. Frowning, he set his bag down in his room before searching for his mother.

She wasn't in her room, or in the living room, or in the kitchen.

Just as Soobin was about to start freaking out, his phone buzzed with a message from his mom.

**Mom** 💜: hey Binnie! Sry I didn't tell u earlier. I'll be home late today. Dinner is in the fridge💜

Sighing, Soobin put his phone away and walked into the kitchen. He really wasn't in the mood for dinner so he grabbed a few cookies from the cupboard and poured himself a glass of milk.

He carried them back into his room and set them on his desk, before throwing himself on to his bed. 

He didn't know how long he lay there, trying to gather the strength to do something, _anything_. But he couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was gonna happen soon.

His phone buzzed, shaking him out of his stupor. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and sat up, reaching out to grab a cookie and sticking it in his mouth.

He pressed his thumb on the message notification and couldn't help the small grin that settled on his face.

**Beomie** : I HAD SO MUCH FUN! THX FOR DOING THIS JAEMIN!

**pRoFeSsOr SnApE** 😈: haha no prob kids🙃 I had fun too

**Tae** : btw not to be that person but...👀

**Kai** : ur not abt to say what I think u r right👀

**Jun** **Hyung** : he is👀

**Binnie** **Hyung** : what I'm confused…

**Tae** : oh ya u were asleep in the room Hyung

**Kai** : I can fill u in😃

**pRoFeSsOr** **SnApE** 😈: I can't believe y'all actually believe in that stuff😑

**Tae** : we don't but srsly considering that we ourselves r magical beings I don't think it's far fetched

**Kai** : ANYWAYS basically the gist of the story is jaemin is trying to get us killed

**pRoFeSsOr** **SnApE** 😈: WAT?! THATS NOT TRUE😭

**Tae** : 🤦🏽 don't listen to Kai, Hyung lemme explain

**Binnie** **Hyung** : um ok...😅

**Tae** : basically, while we were outside, we met some of Jaemin's dance classmates…

**Kai** : and they told us his plan to kill us👀

**Tae** : no… I'm pretty sure they were just trying to scare us but they said that the classroom we're using is haunted and that there's a ghost in there

**Jun** **Hyung** : bro tell him the backstory it's so creepy

**Tae** : um I kinda forgot it😬

**Beomie** : I'll tell him! I'ma send a voice message gimme a sec

  
  


Soobin frowned softly as the chat went silent, waiting for Beomgyu to record the message. He didn't wanna jump the gun, but his mind had instantly jumped to the strange figure he'd seen in the practice room.

He shook his head, trying to dispel the silly thought, because it couldn't possibly be true, right? Still, just as Taehyun had said, considering everything it really wasn't that hard to believe.

His phone buzzed again, making Soobin bring his attention back to the messages.

He immediately pressed the play button on Beomgyu's new message and held his breath as his voice streamed out into his room, breaking the silence.

“ _So basically, the story goes something like this… Some years ago, there was this one girl who took dance classes in that very room. But she wasn't very good and the teacher was super strict. He would always punish the entire class whenever someone would make a mistake. So eventually the entire class started hating her and bullying her and stuff. They got fed up one day and when they were going on spring break, they locked her inside the classroom. They said they wouldn't let her out unless she nailed the dance. Well she stayed there for about a week before she started going crazy. She apparently broke the mirror and stabbed herself with one of the shards. When the authorities found her she was dead… they were able to bring her back for a while before she died again. But before she died a second time, she said something along the lines of… I'll haunt that place forever, I may be gone but you'll always see my reflection in the broken mirror… So basically that's it. Pretty creepy, huh?”_

As the message ended, Soobin let his breath go in a rush, hardly daring to believe his ears. 

Had he seriously seen the reflection of a dead girl in the mirror? Or was it just coincidence?

Soobin desperately wanted to believe that it was, but he couldn't just ignore the obvious when it was staring him in the face.

  
  


**pRoFeSsOr** **SnApE** 😈: u shudnt believe ppl so easily u guys. They were just messing, tryna scare u

**Kai** : well it worked😭

**pRoFeSsOr** **SnApE** 😈: don't listen to them guys, I've been using that room for yrs there's nothing to worry about

**Beomie** : hey bin Hyung? Why'd u vanish?

**Binnie** **Hyung** : oh sry spaced out for a sec😅 I gotta get going guys cya

  
  


Soobin quickly turned his phone off and set it next to the long forgotten cookies and milk. He fell back onto his bed and sighed heavily.

This couldn't possibly be happening right?

It was just a coincidence. It had to be.

His phone buzzed again and he sat up, risking a glance at the screen. It was a message from Beomgyu on their other group chat. The one without Jaemin, just them.

Soobin groaned, knowing exactly what the message would be as he picked up his phone again.

Sure enough, it was a message directed towards him asking him to fess up.

  
  


**Beomie** : alright spill Hyung. Y u acting so weird?

**Kai** : what's wrong Hyung?☹️

**Jun** **Hyung** : u can tell us

**Tae** : ya it's ok to be scared hyungie🙃

  
  


Soobin rolled his eyes, smiling slightly. He could just imagine Taehyun snickering as he typed out that message.

The smile quickly dropped when he remembered why he was ‘acting so weird’, as Beomgyu had put it.

  
  


**Binnie** **Hyung** : um maybe we shud video call…

**Jun** **Hyung** : everything ok, Binnie…?

**Binnie** **Hyung** : ya ya I just don't feel like typing it out

  
  


Not a minute later, his phone began vibrating as Beomgyu started the video call. He picked up right away and took a deep breath as the others started joining.

“Ok…” He said once everyone had joined. “Should I start?”

“Mhm.” Beomgyu said, nodding encouragingly.

“Alright, so…” Soobin said, as he began to tell them exactly what had happened while they had been out.

There was pin drop silence for a second after he finished his story before everyone began talking at once.

“Wait, wait, guys-”

Soobin cut off abruptly as a loud ringing suddenly pierced his ears, blocking out all noise. It was so sudden that Soobin dropped his phone and pressed his palms against his ears.

It did nothing to stop the noise of course, but a few seconds later, the ringing vanished as abruptly as it had come. Soobin frowned, confused as he slowly moved his hands away from his ears.

_What was that?_

He didn't have any time to think about what had just happened when he heard the boys tiny voices streaming through his phone.

He reached down and grabbed it, staring down at all the concerned faces.

“Yo, Hyung, what the heck?” Kai asked.

“What happened?” Taehyun asked.

Soobin shook his head slowly, sighing.

“Nothing guys… My phone just slipped…”

“Hey don't hide things from us.” Beomgyu said, frowning.

“Ya, I can read minds now so I know if you're lying.” Taehyun said.

Soobin scoffed, a dry laugh leaving him.

“Does your mind reading even work when we're miles apart?” He asked, sarcastically.

“Um, no…” Taehyun said, sheepishly. “But still, Hyung. I don't need to be a mind reader to know that you're not telling us something.”

Soobin sighed, rubbing his face with his hands.

“It was really nothing, you guys. My ears just started ringing. I don't think that has anything to do with anything.”

“Hmmm, maybe not…” Taehyun muttered. “Just tell us if it happens again.”

Soobin nodded wordlessly.

“Ok, now back to your story…” Yeonjun said. “I think we can safely say that it's a coincidence for now since you only saw ‘the ghost’ once.”

“So if you see it again tomorrow, you better tell us, ok?” Beomgyu said.

“Right ok…” Soobin muttered, desperately wishing that it really was just a coincidence.

“Anywaaaays…” Beomgyu said, drawing out the word. “We didn't get a chance to talk much before, but I wanted to ask how y'all's training thing went.”

“Oh, can I go first?” Yeonjun asked, excitement lacing his words as he smiled widely.

“Sure Hyung…” Beomgyu said.

“Ok, ok, so basically, I was paired off with Kai and at first I kept trying to say things to him mentally but it just wouldn't work. Ryujin said to visualize exactly what I wanted to say and the person I wanted to say it to but I couldn't get it.”

“Mind powers apparently require a lot of focus, but Yeonjun Hyung kept thinking about when we could have a break.” Kai said, snickering.

“Ya! And so I decided why not just try and send _that_ message. So I thought… Hey Kai, when do you think we'll have a break? And suddenly, he looked at me and went, how should _I_ know when we'll get a break, Hyung? It was awesome!”

“It was like I could hear Hyung without him saying anything… After that Ryujin taught me how to respond without speaking.” Kai explained.

“Wait, but…” Soobin asked, confused. 

“I know what you're thinking, Hyung. No I'm not also a telepath, but apparently as long as we have one, we can have a two way conversation. Granted that Yeonjun Hyung starts the conversation.” 

“Ah, I see…” Soobin said. “I'm sure it's less confusing than it sounds… Did you guys do it then? Have a silent conversation?”

“Yup! Ryujin taught Kai how to do something similar. He didn't have to focus on me, just the message and it didn't tire him out or anything.” Yeonjun said. “Me on the other hand… I definitely needed that break…”

“Ok, ok, my turn!” Kai said. “You guys have no idea how hard it was to lift my phone like that. Telekinesis is no joke. It was like… Instead of using my hands to lift it, I was using my mind and lemme tell you… My mind wasn't built to hold things in midair.”

“You did pretty well, though.” Soobin commented. “I saw you do the thing with your phone. It was pretty impressive.”

“Thanks Hyung.” Kai said, smiling widely. “It was hard, but I think it was worth it. This power stuff really is super cool.”

“It really is…” Soobin said. “Alright, who's next?”

“Ooh, me!” Beomgyu said, excitedly. “Since I already got the emotion manipulation down, Ryujin thought she should teach me how to access memories and how to change and erase them.”

“So, wait…” Taehyun muttered. “ Don't tell me you actually… Went through her memories and did stuff?!”

“Ah well…” Beomgyu said. “Not exactly… She said something like the power would only affect her if she lets it, so basically I only saw what she wanted me to.”

Soobin frowned, remembering how Jaemin had said something similar to him. Could Ryujin also be a spirit rider like him?

“But Beomie…” Yeonjun said. “I mean, what memories did she let you… Change?”

“Guys, guys, I'm getting there…” Beomgyu said. “So basically here's how we did it. In the beginning, I told her three words that she had to remember by the end of our conversation. After that, we just talked about random things and while we were doing that I did exactly what she told me to. I entered her mind and first practiced erasing the words. Long story short, by the end of it, she'd forgotten the words. Then we did the same thing, but this time she remembered different words. Changing the memories was so much harder.”

“Wow, that's insane…” Taehyun said.

“This entire thing is insane.” Yeonjun said. “Ah, Soobin, you haven't told us your story yet.”

“Well I basically made Jaemin believe my name was Changbin for a good five minutes.”

Beomgyu burst out laughing at that.

“He thought your name was Changbin!? No way, bro!”

“Yes way!” Soobin said, chuckling. “ It was so tiring though. He wouldn't let me take a break so at some point I tried charming him and I almost convinced him to let me stop but he caught on and started resisting.”

“Aw man, it would've been cool if it had worked…” Beomgyu said. “Anywho, Taehyun, your turn.”

“Ah, right. Like Beomgyu, Ryujin decided that I already had the life force thing down. So she started teaching me how to read minds. It wasn't too hard and it was pretty straightforward. She thought of a number and asked me to guess it. The funny thing is that it doesn't feel like I'm invading someone's mind. It feels like their thoughts are inside my head and I can just sense that they don't belong to me.”

Soobin hummed in acknowledgement. It seemed that they had all made good progress.

“Oh, by the way, you guys!” Beomgyu said suddenly. “My birthday's coming up!”

“Ooh really? When?” Kai asked.

“It’s next Friday! I'm throwing a party at the roller skating rink! Y'all are invited of course. Some of my cousins and my mom's friends are gonna be there too but we never really talk so the five of us can stick together.”

“That sounds fun!” Soobin said, smiling. “But I should warn you… I can't skate…”

“That's ok!” Beomgyu said. “Neither can I!”

“I can teach you guys!” Yeonjun said. “Let Hyung lead the way.”

“Me and Kai can also skate so don't worry about it, you guys.” Taehyun said.

“Looks like we'll have a whole entourage behind us, Hyung.” Beomgyu said, laughing.

“Hey, why host your party at a roller rink when you can't skate?” Taehyun asked, incredulously.

“Maybe I wanna learn?” Beomgyu said, shrugging. “But honestly, I just thought it would be fun. I went last year and it was so much fun even if I did wake up sore the next morning.”

“Don't worry, Beomie.” Yeonjun said. “By the time we leave the rink, you'll be a pro! I promise!”

“Alright, I'll hold you to that!” Beomgyu said, laughing. “Anyways guys, I have to get going now. I'll see you tomorrow!”

“Bye Beomie!” Soobin said, waving with the others.

After Beomgyu had left, the others began leaving as well. Soobin was the last to leave. He sighed, staring at the now blank screen of his phone.

Considering everything, things were much better now. They'd gotten the hang of their powers. They knew how to prevent possible mishaps. And they knew enough about themselves for it to be less stressful.

But despite all that, Soobin just couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was going to happen soon.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Hyung, seriously, what time did you sleep?” Beomgyu asked, raising his voice slightly.

It was only the second class of the day and Soobin was already nodding off. It was concerning to say the least and even more so when Beomgyu could sense the anxiety Soobin was feeling.

“Hyung, please tell me what's wrong. I thought you trusted me with this stuff…”

“I do, I do…” Soobin muttered sleepily. He sighed, lifting his head off the desk. 

“So tell me what's wrong. Why are you so tense these days? And why aren't you sleeping? I thought the dreams stopped.”

“They did stop…” Soobin said, trailing off. “It's… Kinda annoying. When I had the dreams, it made me feel secure for some reason. Like I was still in the loop of things and I knew what was going on… Even if I really didn't. But the silence just seems so… Heavy? I feel like anything could happen at any time and I don't know what to do…”

“You think something bad is gonna happen? And your lack of dreams is making you feel that way?”

“Not just that…” Soobin said, frustrated. “There's more… Like even if I was having the dreams I think I'd still feel this way, but that's the only reason I can come up with right now…”

“Is it because of what you saw in the practice room?”

“Um, maybe that too…? Like I said, I don't know why I feel this way, but it just seems too quiet.”

“The calm before the storm…” Beomgyu said, softly.

“Yes, that…”

They fell silent for a few seconds before Beomgyu reached out and placed a hand on Soobin's arm.

“I could… Make you feel better?” He asked, hesitantly.

Sighing, Soobin shook his head.

“You and I both know that's not the best way to handle emotions…”

Beomgyu nodded solemnly, moving his hand away.

“But I think I'm going to ignore it for now…” Soobin muttered. “I'm sorry I wasn't paying attention earlier. What were you saying?”

“Oh…” Beomgyu grinned slightly, happy to change the subject. “I was wondering whether or not I should invite Jaemin. And if I do, then should I invite Ryujin too?”

“I think it should be fine if you invite Jaemin. We don't really know Ryujin that well…”

“But wouldn't it be rude not to invite her after all she's done for us?” Beomgyu reasoned.

“Hm, I guess you're right. She might feel out of place with us though…”

“She doesn't have to stick with us if she doesn't want to…”

“Right… Well then I guess you could ask Jaemin and tell him he can bring Ryujin if he wants. He'll know best if she'll wanna come or not.”

“Ah, that's a good idea.” Beomgyu said, grinning. “Thanks Hyung.”

“No problem, Beomie.” Soobin said, smiling. 

Already he felt as if a weight was lifting from his shoulders. Beomgyu just always managed to make him happier.

The rest of the class went by smoothly, both of them helping each other when they struggled and before long the bell rang for third period.

Soobin had just begun to feel like he could go through the rest of the day without stressing when something changed that.

As they were walking to their lockers, Soobin's ears started ringing painfully. He stopped abruptly, pressing his hands against his ears.

_What the heck?_

_Why is this happening again?_

“Hyung!”

Soobin shook his head as the ringing slowly died down. He blinked a few times, eyes focusing on Beomgyu’s concerned face. There were some people who slowed down to throw confused glances towards them before continuing on their way.

“Hyung, are you ok?” Beomgyu said, frowning in concern.

“Huh? Um, ya I think so…” Soobin was aware that he sounded painfully unsure but he was still confused as to why his ears were ringing like this for no apparent reason.

“You just stopped walking out of nowhere…” Beomgyu muttered. “And then you were covering your ears and I kept trying to ask you what was wrong but you wouldn’t respond… did you… not hear me calling you?”

Soobin shook his head.

“No… my ears just started ringing so loudly… I couldn’t hear anything….it was exactly like what happened last night…”

“Maybe you should get it checked by a doctor or something? Can you hear me now?” Beomgyu asked.

“Ya, I can hear you just fine right now…”

Beomgyu gasped softly, eyes widening suddenly.

“Wait…” he said, leaning closer and lowering his voice slightly. “Aren’t you also supposed to have enhanced hearing powers or something? Or something related to sound manipulation?”

“Both…” Soobin said, nodding.

“Do you think this has something to do with that?”

“Maybe… but what? Maybe we should ask Jaemin later today?”

“Ya maybe…” Beomgyu said, trailing off.

“Ask Jaemin what later today?”

Soobin turned his head to see Yeonjun approaching them with a smile on his face. The smile dropped quickly when he saw the expressions on the others faces.

“Hey, what’s wrong you guys?” Yeonjun asked, concerned.

Just as Soobin was about to tell him what had happened, Beomgyu suddenly cut him off, asking the strangest question.

“Hey Hyung, your bracelet is gone!?”

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> JSKSHDJDH THERES ONLY A FEW HOURS OMGGG  
> 😅on a calmer note, I'm posting a smol one shot thing specifically to celebrate the comeback so be sure to check that out👀
> 
> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	18. Rebel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was honestly not planning on updating today but I saw that this story has OVER 1000 HITS?!  
> THX TO EVERYONE WHO HAS READ AND COMMENTED ON THIS STORY!  
> MUCH LOVE!😘😘  
> Have an early chapter as a little celebration hehe🙃  
> Anywhoooooooooooooooooooooo stream eternity and let's goooo

Yeonjun sighed as he thought about the conversation he’d had with Jaemin the previous night. 

He knew that he should probably pay attention to the teacher who was droning on and on about the lesson. He knew he should probably be more alert and stop worrying the maknaes.

They had been asking non stop what was wrong with him the second he walked into the second period classroom with them.

The only reason Taehyun hadn’t resorted to reading his Hyung’s mind was because he had hastily promised to tell them all later.

He would've told them sooner, except for the little issue that he had no idea how they would react. He didn't know if they felt the same way as he felt about this entire situation.

Jaemin definitely seemed to be more than a little shocked when Yeonjun had come to him and asked the controversial question.

But Yeonjun absolutely _ had _ to know if their powers worked without the bracelets. Not because he was planning on doing anything terrible, of course not…

But ever since the incident with Soobin, Yeonjun held a sort of anxious fear that something like that would happen again. They had absolutely no idea what was considered unethical and what was not. It was very stressful and Yeonjun was constantly on edge, keeping a careful eye on his dongsaengs whenever they did something slightly questionable.

He didn't want to admit it, but he was developing a slight hatred towards the bracelets at this point.

Jaemin had sternly told him that they needed the bracelets to access their powers but Yeonjun wasn't sure he believed him.

For one, they couldn't trust him to tell them the whole truth at this point anyways.

And Yeonjun distinctly remembered one of Soobin's dreams when they had used their powers without the bracelets.

He really wanted to talk to the others about it as soon as possible, but he didn't know if they'd be on board to ditch the bracelets once Jaemin had taught them everything.

“Alright, class…”

Yeonjun shook his head, focusing back on the teacher as she raised her voice slightly.

“As I'm sure you've all been paying attention, I'm going to give you a small pop quiz. Everyone clear your desks and take out a sheet of paper.”

Yeonjun groaned internally as the teacher wrote five questions on the board, none of which sounded even vaguely familiar to him.

Copying the questions down on his paper as the room went silent, he desperately wracked his brain for anything that had to do with what an operational definition was.

He chose the answer that sounded slightly intelligent before sighing and gripping his head. He knew it was wrong. He didn't want this to affect his grade.

Yeonjun paused, staring at his paper blankly. He glanced over at Kai sitting next to him, writing diligently on his own paper. Then he glanced up at the teacher then finally down at his bracelet.

Before he could think twice about it, he quietly slid the bracelet off his wrist and sent Kai a quick message with his telepathy.

**_Hey Kai?_ **

He sat, waiting in anticipation, hoping that Jaemin had been wrong and that they really didn't need the bracelets for their powers.

_ Hyung? Did you need something? _

Yeonjun's breath caught in his throat as his eyes widened. It had worked. The bracelets had nothing to do with the powers. Except the obvious.

**_Ah ya… I just wanted to know if you got the same answer as me for the first question..._ **

_ Oh, I got C Hyung… _

Yeonjun glanced down at his paper, sighing as he erased his answer and circled C. Now that Kai had said it, it was clear that was the correct choice.

**_I also got C…_ **

Yeonjun felt bad for lying to Kai but he needed to. He had to do it to avoid questions until he was ready to talk about his discovery.

He asked Kai about the rest of the questions as well, his heart heavy with guilt before he realized something.

This would've been completely normal if they were normal kids.

Yeonjun had lost count of how many times he had cheated over the days. It was just a normal part of life. The bracelets were preventing even small, meaningless things like that?

Yeonjun also remembered how Beomgyu had stood up for Taehyun against the bully only for his bracelet to nearly turn against him.

Were they not even allowed to defend themselves?

He thought that was extremely unfair, especially since they never had any warning. He felt bad that Soobin had to be the example for the rest of them.

Frowning, he glanced down at the bracelet. He had made his decision.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

As Yeonjun walked out of the classroom after second period, he tried his best to keep a smile on his face. He didn't need anyone asking him what was up right now. He would tell them when the time was right.

Sighing, he lifted his eyes as he got closer to the lockers. His smile grew upon seeing Beomgyu and Soobin already there. They were facing away from the crowd, talking about something in hushed whispers.

He could pick up some of what they were saying as he got closer.

“Do you think this has something to do with that?” Beomgyu was saying.

“Maybe… But what? Maybe we should ask Jaemin later today?” Soobin replied.

“Ya maybe…” Beomgyu said, trailing off.

“Ask Jaemin what later today?” Yeonjun said, watching as they turned to him.

His smile dropped when he saw the dark expressions on their faces.

“Hey what's wrong you guys?” He asked, carefully.

Soobin sighed, opening his mouth to respond before Beomgyu cut him off loudly.

“Hey Hyung, your bracelet is gone?!”

Eyes widening, Yeonjun glanced down at his wrist to see that Beomgyu was right and that his bracelet was indeed gone.

Had he forgotten it in the classroom?

Just then, the boys heard footsteps coming in their direction.

Turning his head, he saw Kai and Taehyun walking up to them.

“Hey Hyung, you left this on your desk…” Kai said slowly, lifting up the bracelet.

Yeonjun took it wordlessly, fastening it around his wrist.

“Thanks Kai…” He muttered.

“What was it even doing off your wrist in the first place?” Soobin asked, eyes narrowing.

“Must have slipped off…” He said, shrugging.

“Hyung, I swear I'm not reading your mind right now but…” Taehyun said, raising an eyebrow. “You're a terrible liar…”

“Speaking of lying…” Kai said. “I know you lied to me about your answer back in class…”

Yeonjun groaned, dropping his head in his hands. He had been caught.

“Ok…” He said, lifting his head and looking at each of them in turn. “Do you guys trust me?”

Yeonjun grinned slightly when all of his dongsaengs nodded without hesitation.

“Ok, I promise I'll tell you guys everything tonight. After training with Jaemin. I promise, ok?”

“Ok…” Beomgyu voiced for the rest of them. “Everything ok, Hyung? Nothing weird is happening right?”

“When is something weird  _ not _ happening?” Yeonjun said, scoffing. “Something… Is happening but don't worry… Everything's ok… I think…”

“That sounded really convincing…” Soobin muttered.

“Anyways guys…” Taehyun said, catching everyone's attention. “We'll talk about this later today ok? Let's get going before we're late for our next class.”

“Right, ok…” Kai said.

“We'll see you guys later then!” Soobin said, waving.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The rest of the day went by in a blur, each of the boys lost in their own thoughts. School ended so quickly that Soobin couldn't believe it had been hours since they talked to Yeonjun.

As he stood in front of the school waiting for the others, he thought back to their conversation. 

He didn't know what to think. He had already witnessed first-hand Yeonjun's resentment towards the bracelets.

Whatever the reason, it was quite unsettling to see that he had completely ditched his bracelet.

Well, according to Yeonjun it had just fallen off…

Soobin wasn't sure if he believed that.

But at the end of the day, he trusted his Hyung and was willing to hear what he had to say.

“Hey Soobin?”

Soobin turned upon hearing Jaemin's voice behind him. He frowned when he saw the boy. He looked anxious and tired, like he was stressing about an exam or something.

It was clear that Jaemin was trying to hide that as he flashed Soobin a bright smile.

“Hey Jaemin. What's up?” Soobin asked.

“Oh, nothing…” Jaemin said. “Just wanted to let you know that I don't think I can teach you guys today…”

“Oh?” Soobin frowned in confusion. “Everything ok?”

“Hm? Oh yeah, everything's fine…” Jaemin said, seemingly distracted. “Just a bit busy today…”

“Alright then…” Soobin said, frown deepening. He would've asked a bit more had he been closer friends with the boy, but since he wasn't, Soobin didn't think it was his place.

“Tell the others for me, ok? I gotta go now.” Jaemin said.

“Alright, I will. Take care, Jaemin.” Soobin said, as the boy began to walk away.

“Thanks! You too, Soobin!” 

And with that, he continued on his way.

Soobin stood, staring after him, confused. He had only just realized that Ryujin hadn't come to school. Maybe that was why he was busy? Maybe something had happened to her? Maybe that was why he looked so stressed?

Soobin made a mental note to ask Beomgyu about it later. The two were close and Soobin was almost certain that if something had happened, Beomgyu would be the first person he'd tell.

“Hey Hyung! Sorry we're late!” 

Soobin turned to see the others walking towards him. Beomgyu was leading the way, a bright smile on his face.

Soobin watched as the smile dropped slightly when Beomgyu noticed something was amiss.

“Hey, where's Jaemin?” He asked.

“He told me to tell you guys he can't teach today… He's busy with… Something…”

Beomgyu frowned, making Soobin's shoulders drop in disappointment. Whatever had happened had apparently been kept from him as well.

“He didn't specify?” Taehyun asked.

Soobin shook his head.

“That's strange…”

“Why?” Yeonjun asked. “He's just busy…?”

“Well…” Taehyun said, turning to him. “I noticed Ryujin wasn't here today…”

“Same here…” Soobin said. “It could be connected…”

Kai laughed suddenly, dropping his head in his hands.

“Are we seriously analyzing why someone cancelled plans?”

“Nothing is a normal occurrence anymore. Everything needs to be analyzed.” Beomgyu said, only half joking.

Soobin sighed, turning to everyone.

“Alright, since that clears up our schedule a little bit, we could talk about what happened today.”

“Right…” Yeonjun said. “Do y'all wanna come to my place? We could talk there?”

“Sure…” Soobin said.

Everyone nodded, completely on board with that.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Soobin sighed as he threw himself onto Yeonjun's bed, a small smile on his face.

He hadn't realized how much he'd missed the place. He smiled as he remembered all the times they had shared in this very room.

He sat up on the bed, staring out the window as he waited for the others to come inside.

As he waited he heard a strange noise, almost like small footsteps.

He frowned, straining his ears to hear the noise but before he could, the others came in, drowning out the noise.

“Hey Yeonjun Hyung…” Soobin said, turning to him as everyone walked in. “What's that noise?”

“Noise? What noise?” Yeonjun asked, setting his backpack down on his bed.

“A noise? There's a noise?” Kai asked.

“What noise?!” Beomgyu shrieked.

“Well, if you guys would shut up for a sec….” Soobin said, rolling his eyes.

The entire room fell silent, listening for the noise.

“There! Don't you hear it?” Soobin asked.

Yeonjun looked at him, unimpressed.

“You mean the footsteps?”

“Yes!”

“That's Iris, bro…”

“Iris?” Soobin asked, tilting his head in confusion.

“Ya, remember? The cat?” 

Yeonjun bent down, peering under his bed for a few seconds before coming back up, holding the small black cat in his hand to punctuate his sentence.

“Oh, right…” Soobin said, staring at the cat's multicolored eyes.

“Iris!!” Beomgyu shrieked, leaping over to Yeonjun and snatching the cat from his arms.

“My kitty…” He hummed happily as the two maknaes laughed.

“Why doesn't Beomgyu just keep it if he likes it so much?” Soobin asked.

“I don't want the cat to be affected by the obvious bad environment of my house…” Beomgyu said, voice turning serious for a second.

He glanced over at maknaes and Yeonjun, taking in their confused expressions.

“I haven't been completely open with you guys…” Beomgyu said.

“You… Don't have to be…” Taehyun said hesitantly.

Beomgyu shook his head, settling down with the cat in his lap.

“It's fine. I'll give you guys details later but for now, let's talk about Yeonjun.”

Everyone settled down, trying to shift their minds from Beomgyu's sudden comment. As Soobin settled down next to him, he smiled at Beomgyu, mouthing the words, “I'm proud of you” to him.

Soobin and Beomgyu had often talked about how he wanted to tell everyone everything but didn't know how or when. With his birthday coming up, Beomgyu decided he wanted to come clean before then.

They were the only boys from their friend group that didn't have both parents. Everyone already knew Soobin's situation since there really wasn't much to tell except his dad running off without a trace.

But with Beomgyu, there was a whole lot of emotional baggage and Soobin often thought that the four of them could help Beomgyu get over that once he decided to tell them.

Turning back to the others, Soobin focused back on the issue at hand.

“Ok, so…” Yeonjun began. “I had a conversation with Jaemin yesterday… During our training session…”

Yeonjun told them the entire situation from A to Z. It was clear that he was super nervous, never directly making eye contact with the others, as if he was afraid of their reactions.

But the more he spoke, the more Soobin finally understood why he had been acting so strangely.

“Anyways, I'm sorry for lying to all of you earlier, but I really didn't know how you were gonna react. Still don't actually…”

“Well, first off all, what're you suggesting?” Taehyun asked.

“We let Jaemin train us, then take the bracelets off for good.”

“Hmm, ok…” Taehyun said thoughtfully. “Why not just go for it now?”

“Because of Jaemin's reaction. He clearly lied… I don't know why… But he wouldn't teach us if we did that. We kinda need him right now…”

“That's true…” Kai muttered. “But why did he lie about it? That's the only gray area here.”

“Maybe he genuinely didn't know?” Soobin suggested.

“No, that wouldn't make sense.” Taehyun said. “If he didn't know, he would've said straight up. He wanted to prevent us from doing exactly what we're thinking of doing…”

“And why do that?” Kai asked. 

“Maybe to protect us?” Beomgyu said. “But from what?”

“I personally think that we should be able to make our own decisions. Now that we know it's possible, it's up to us whether or not we should do it. Besides, I don't think there's any harm in it. I did it and nothing happened.” Yeonjun said.

“Ok…” Taehyun said. “I'm on board.”

“What? Really?” Yeonjun asked, incredulously.

“Ya, all your points make sense. We have no idea what to expect from the bracelets. We might as well get rid of them.”

“I'm also on board!” Kai said, raising his hand.

“Me too…” Beomgyu said. “It's super annoying when I can't use my power to defend myself or my friends.”

The three boys turned to Soobin, waiting expectantly.

Soobin flinched at all the stares, still not entirely sure where he stood on the matter.

“I… I don't know, you guys…” He muttered, utterly lost.

“To be honest, I thought you'd be the easiest to convince…” Yeonjun said. “You've experienced first hand what the bracelets can do. And it was because of what happened to you that made me feel this way….”

Soobin thought about it for a while. He would be lying if he said it didn't make him nervous every time the bracelets glowed after the incident. But at the same time, something in him told him that something was… Strange about the decision. Not wrong, just strange…

He thought about how easy it would be without the bracelets. Not having to worry every time he did something.

The other four all put their hands on top of each other's, and glanced at Soobin.

“We're waiting…” Beomgyu said, laughing slightly at the concentrated look on his Hyung’s face.

“Will you join us?” Kai said, jokingly.

Soobin grinned slightly, hesitating only one more second before putting his hand in the middle.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Right decision or wrong decision?👀 Who knows?👀👀 Not me🤷🏽♀️👀👀👀  
> Anyways😅  
> I'm going to be posting a new work based off TXT's mv so be on the lookout for that!  
> Stay safe kiddos!💕
> 
> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	19. Resistance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GUYS PUMA  
> I WAS NOT READY  
> IM CURRENTLY WRITING FROM MY GRAVE BC I HAVE DIED  
> THE MV, THE STUDIO CHOOM, THE PERFORMANCES, JUST EVERYTHING, BEAUTIFUL  
> anyways...😅  
> Onto the chapter!

Taehyun knew something was up the minute he saw his dad's car in the driveway.

_Dad's home?_

_Why's dad home?_

His dad rarely came home from work early, and Taehyun only ever saw him on weekends. Not that he wanted to see him more than he already did. The only time he ever spoke to him was when he wasn't doing well in school, same as his mom.

As he stepped into his house, he tried to get away quietly, but his dad, who was sitting on the couch, scrolling through his phone, noticed him right away.

“Taehyun…” His dad said, amiably.

Taehyun turned around slowly, smiling at both his dad and his mom who was standing in the kitchen.

“Hey, Dad. Hey, Mom.” He said.

“Where were you, Taehyun?” His dad asked, not bothering to reply.

“Yeonjun's place.” Taehyun answered.

He was beginning to get anxious. This sounded a lot like a confrontation. He didn't know what his parents were planning but it couldn't be anything good.

“Yeonjun's place…” His dad repeated, his amiable tone and slight smile never disappearing.

Taehyun glanced at his mom, who was clearly smirking. She's probably told him about his less than perfect grades.

“Your mother has been telling me about your grades, Taehyun.” His dad said, confirming his suspicions. “You're not doing very well.”

“Depends on your definition of well…” Taehyun muttered, thinking about his B+’s and A’s.

Taehyun was absolutely sure his parents were robots that could only process straight A’s on his reports card.

“Your definition of well doesn't matter, Taehyun.” His dad said, smiling. “You should know this by now.”

“Whatever we do and say, we're doing it because we love you, Taehyun.” His mother said.

Taehyun took an involuntary step back, his heart beginning to race. They always said that before giving him a threat of some sort.

“But we've noticed that your grades were fine before you became friends with these four boys.” His dad said, slowly.

Taehyun shook his head.

“You can't possibly-”

“No interruptions, Taehyun dear.” His mother said, her voice sickeningly sweet.

“We won't stop you from hanging out with them for now. But we do want to see some improvement. Honey?” His dad gestured for his mother to continue.

“I got a call from Beomgyu's mother today.” She said, smiling. “I understand he's having a party next Friday? Is that correct?”

“Y-yes.” Taehyun said, fighting to keep his voice steady.

“So here's what we've decided. It shouldn't be too hard.” His mother said. “If you pass your next test, you'll be allowed to go to his party. If not…”

“You won't.” His father finished, smiling as if he just said something clever.

“So? What do you think? Are you ok with this arrangement?”

Taehyun almost laughed out loud. They were asking as if he had a choice in the matter. But he nodded anyway.

“Hm? I didn't hear you dear. Are you ok with this?” His mind asked, her smirk still present.

Taehyun fought the urge to roll his eyes and instead sighed and dropped his gaze.

“Yes.” he responded.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Taehyun sighed as he stepped into his room and closed the door. Dropping his backpack on the floor, he trudged over to his bed and fell onto it heavily.

He covered his face with shaking hands, trying to calm his racing heart. Nothing scared him more than a conversation with his parents. Even the most casual conversations left him with a heavy feeling in his heart.

They didn't treat him like a son. They treated him like a possession, a coveted trophy that they could show off to people and brag about.

The only problem was that, unlike a trophy, they couldn't throw him away when he started becoming irrelevant. And so they were always on his back to do better when he slipped even slightly, dealing out threats and conditions like cards from a deck.

Sighing heavily, he dropped his hands and stared blankly at the ceiling.

This shouldn't be too hard right? Tomorrow was Thursday. His next test would probably be sometime next week. As long as it wasn't world history, he should be fine.

There was absolutely nothing to worry about.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Maybe he should've paid more attention during history class. Or maybe he should've noticed that the world seemed to be against them these days.

Anyways, he should have at least _guessed_ that Ms. Kim would do something like this.

“Your test will be tomorrow everyone, so I hope you all paid attention to the review.”

He had not paid attention to the review. He'd tried so hard but he simply wasn't ready to take the test tomorrow.

Taehyun groaned in annoyance as the entire class began to protest. But the teacher didn't budge. She was known for not changing her plans for anyone or anything.

Taehyun didn't have personal experience but he'd heard some students talking about how she made them take a test that had already been delayed by a fire drill the same day. That didn't stop her and she'd made everyone stay after school just for her test.

He was ready to give up hope. Maybe he could ask Kai or Soobin to help him study but that was it. They were the best at history in their group but it wasn't like they could help him memorize the countless dates that just wouldn't stick in his mind.

“Hyung? What's wrong?”

Taehyun sighed and lifted his head at the sound of Kai's concerned voice. Both Yeonjun and Kai were giving him worried stares.

Taehyun dropped his head in his hands, gripping his hair.

“I can't take the test tomorrow…” He muttered. “I'm going to fail.”

“Hey, I'm sure you'll do fine.” Yeonjun muttered, comfortingly.

Taehyun shook his head adamantly.

“No, I'm telling you, I can't do this.”

“Hey, even if you fail, it's not the end of the world, yeah? Just take it easy, don't worry so much, you'll be fine.” Kai said.

Taehyun sighed, knowing his friends meant well, but they really didn't know the half of it.

“Guys, my parents will actually kill me…”

Yeonjun and Kai shared a look. Kai knew what had happened the night Soobin and Beomgyu were discharged from the hospital and he had told Yeonjun the gist of it.

It made some sense why he was freaking out, but both boys knew there was probably something else to it.

“Ok, how about this? Me and Soobin will help you during lunch and you can tell us why you're so scared. And maybe we should skip magic class with Jaemin today…”

Taehyun sighed once more, nodding slowly.

“Ok…”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“What?! Is Ms. Kim out of her mind?” Soobin asked, incredulously once they had all settled down on the rooftop.

“Yeah, she tells us less than a day in advance and expects perfect scores? Not possible.” Yeonjun said.

“But Hyung, you didn't know about the test? Aren't you in her class?” Kai asked.

“I am, but I have her last period.” Soobin explained.

Soobin glanced over at Taehyun who was sitting across from him, eyes glued to his textbook, his entire body tense.

“Hyunnie… Do you wanna talk about it?” Soobin knew it probably had something to do with his parents, but Taehyun had never reacted like this before.

Taehyun sighed and lifted his eyes from the book.

“I can't go to Beomie’s party if I don't pass. And after that it'll only go downhill. They won't let me hang out with you guys. You guys are literally all I have, I can't-”

“Ok, ok calm down Taehyun, breathe.” Beomgyu said, putting a comforting arm around the boy's shoulder.

The panic he was currently feeling was worrying Beomgyu and he didn't think that much stress could be good for anyone.

“Soobin and Kai can help you out, ok?”

“How about you come over to my house, Tae?” Kai suggested. “Soobin Hyung can come too.”

He glanced at the other two.

“You guys can come too, although you'd probably just get bored. Maybe y'all can go ahead and train with Jaemin?”

“Ah, no…” Beomgyu spoke up. “I… Wanted to talk to you guys about…”

No one needed to hear more to know exactly what he was talking about.

“If it's not too much trouble…” Beomgyu trailed off.

“Of course, we can talk about that too, Beomie.” Taehyun said, softly.

“I'll let Jaemin know we need to cancel today.” Soobin said.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Soobin sighed as Ms. Kim said the exact words he knew she would.

“The test will be tomorrow, make sure you are prepared.”

Soobin shook his head, thoroughly frustrated. Teachers really needed to stop acting like their class was the only one worth spending time on.

Soobin himself had no issue with remembering everything, but it was clear he was one of the few as his entire class erupted in sighs, groans, and protests.

No amount of protesting made the teacher budge. Even the most persuasive students got nowhere with her for the entire class.

If Soobin had been good at persuading, he would've given it a go, but he really... wasn't…

Soobin frowned slightly, an idea slowly forming in his mind. He almost shook his head and backed out. That was a terrible idea, wasn't it?

He couldn't possibly be thinking of charming his teacher right now, it wasn't possible.

Taehyun's anxious eyes suddenly flashed in Soobin's mind and his frown deepened.

It was a crazy idea, it probably wouldn't work, but…

If it did, at least Taehyun would be less stressed out.

Soobin closed his eyes and slid his bracelet off his wrist before he could think twice about it.

He opened his eyes, staring at it blankly for a few seconds. He was really doing this.

He tried to keep his hand steady as he slowly raised it in the air.

“Quiet down, everyone!” Ms. Kim said, angrily.

She glanced over at Soobin as the class got quiet. Her expression relaxed slightly as she gestured towards him.

“Thank you, Soobin for raising your hand. Please continue.”

Soobin focused his entire being on convincing his teacher this was a bad idea.

“I have a request… Would it be possible for you to move the test to Monday instead of tomorrow?” He asked, carefully.

Ms. Kim sighed, but she didn't look angry.

“My lesson plan says we have to start the next chapter on Monday, dear. I really wish I could give you guys more time, but…”

“We could always start on Tuesday, Ms. Kim. We'll learn Monday's lesson on Tuesday as well. It shouldn't be too hard. We've done it before.” Soobin said, speaking as if he was saying the most rational thing in the world.

“We could if you guys are willing, but… I'm really not sure I can move it.”

“Ms. Kim, I think you might have to.” Soobin said, slowly as he neared dangerous territory. “It's not fair that you told us a day before the test, now is it?”

“I meant to tell you guys a while ago, but I never got the chance…” Her voice was beginning to sound less confident, as if she was unsure of herself and what she was saying.

Soobin almost grinned in pride, this was so easy. He wasn't even feeling tired yet.

“Why should we suffer for your mistake, Ms. Kim? I mean no disrespect of course, but… Isn't that a little unfair?”

Soobin knew he had done it the moment the woman dropped her gaze and sighed.

“You're right, Soobin. I apologise to everyone. I should've told you all before. Your test will be on Monday.”

Soobin finally let himself smile in triumph.

“Thank you, Ms. Kim.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Omg, Soobin, you were amazing!”

“How did you do that?”

“You're invincible! You convinced Ms. Kim herself!”

“Can we be friends?”

“Choi Soobin, right?”

Soobin couldn't wipe the stupid grin off his face as he was crowded by several students praising him and asking to be friends. Was this how it felt to be popular? Because if so, he would definitely need to convince more teachers pretty soon.

Glancing down at the bracelet that was back on his wrist, he thought this was just another reason among many that proved they didn't need the bracelets and that they were only hindering them from having a normal life.

He was so caught up in all the attention, he almost missed Jaemin coming towards him. His eyes widened slightly. He didn't know why, but he felt a strange rush of guilt as the boy got closer.

He waved the crowd away quickly, promising he would try to hang out later. He kept the smile on his face, until the last person was gone. Once everyone had dispersed, he walked the rest of the way to Jaemin.

“Hey, Soobin.” Jaemin said, glancing behind him. “Was that crowd _your's_?”

Soobin shook his head immediately.

“It was no one's. The teacher just postponed the test, so everyone was just freaking out to each other.”

Jaemin frowned slightly, looking like he didn't believe him, but dropped the topic.

“Anyways, are y'all up for class today?” He asked, turning back to Soobin.

“Ah, no, sorry… We're all kinda busy today…” Soobin said.

“Oh?” Jaemin said, tilting his head. “Y'all hanging out without me?” He asked, teasingly.

Soobin laughed a little, shaking his head.

“Oh no, nothing like that. Just… Having a few issues we needed to talk about…”

“Oh… Everything ok?”

“Yeah, yeah everything's fine. We'll figure it out hopefully.”

“I hope you do, buddy.” Jaemin said, putting a hand on his shoulder. “Say hi to the others for me. Oh, and tell them Ryujin says hi too.”

As Jaemin walked away, Soobin only then noticed that Ryujin hadn't come to school that day either.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Once they had all settled down at Kai's house, Taehyun had insisted on hearing Beomgyu's story first, despite the other’s protests that he should try and study a little.

Eventually, Beomgyu gave in and told everyone his story in the smallest voice possible. Soobin was beside him the whole time, an arm around his shoulder.

Beomgyu noticed that while all of their expressions were sad, Yeonjun and Kai seemed almost guilty. He understood why, of course, since their parents had been nothing but supportive their entire lives. It wasn't their fault though and Beomgyu wanted nothing more than to take that guilt away.

“I'm so sorry, Beomgyu…” Yeonjun muttered, coming forward to hug the boy.

Before he knew what was happening, all four boys had crowded around him, hugging the pain away.

“Thanks guys, but… You don't have to be sorry. All my life I've thought that if I just met you guys, my life would be better and I can say without a doubt… That it's so much better than I could've imagined.”

“Our lives are better with you too, Beomie Hyung.” Kai said solemnly.

“Just to be clear, Soobin already knew all this, right?” Taehyun asked.

Beomgyu nodded.

“He figured it out on his own and I confirmed it.”

“And there's no more secrets between us now right?” Taehyun asked, looking at each of them.

Yeonjun and Kai both nodded, as they had nothing to hide.

“No secrets here.” Soobin said. “Y'all already know about my dad running off and that's basically it.”

“Now it's your turn, Tae…” Beomgyu said, gently.

At that, Taehyun curled in on himself, somehow becoming smaller than he already was.

Taking a deep breath, he told his friends about how his parents didn't see him as a son or even a person, but rather just something to show off. He didn't need to go into too much detail for the others to see how much stress they'd been putting on him over the years.

“That's basically it. I mean nothing to them. They don't see a person when they look at me.”

“Well, you mean the world to us.” Kai said, firmly.

“You don't need those assholes.” Beomgyu said, angrily, wrapping his arms around him.

Taehyun smiled as the Hyungs echoed their words and promised they would always see him as their friend first and foremost.

Even though Yeonjun and Kai didn't have any parent issues, he knew that before they met, each and every one of them suffered from loneliness.

Smiling, Taehyun realized they had all saved each other.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“You did what?!” Taehyun asked, suddenly lifting his head from his textbook.

“Hey! Hyung, you have to focus, I was teaching you!” Kai whined.

“But did you hear what Soobin Hyung just said?” Taehyun asked incredulously.

“Ah, no… What did he say?” Kai asked.

Yeonjun and Beomgyu crept closer to the three, also unable to believe their ears.

“Seriously, Binnie? You're not joking?” Yeonjun asked.

Soobin laughed at his friend's reactions.

“Yes, I charmed Ms. Kim. Was feeling a bit iffy about it in the beginning, but I just wanted things to be easier for Taehyunnie.”

“That's actually so cool, Hyung.” Kai said, his eyes widening in awe.

“I heard she's one of the hardest teachers to convince.” Beomgyu said.

“Not the hardest. No one can make her budge, period. It's just not possible.” Yeonjun said.

“But of course.” Soobin said. “Magic conquers all.”

Beomgyu laughed, jumping off the bed in excitement.

“Oh wow, we're so cool, you guys.”

“We've got all these secret weapons up our sleeves that no one will ever know about.” Yeonjun said, grinning.

“Like secret agents!” Kai said, eyes twinkling in excitement.

“Thanks Hyung, I really appreciate it.” Taehyun said, smiling brightly.

“Hey, no prob, kiddo.” Soobin said, ruffling the boy's hair.

“I might even stand a chance now.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

He did not stand a chance. That much was clear when Kai and Taehyun spent the entire night trying to study.

He just couldn't remember anything, no matter how much he tried.

Taehyun was getting desperate. And when he got desperate, his mind came up with impossible ideas that just might work.

The only problem was, it was technically cheating and he needed Kai to pull it off.

The next morning, Taehyun almost told Kai about his idea but held his tongue, trying to figure out if he could do it himself instead.

By the time second period came around, Taehyun was already fully convinced he wouldn't be able to do this without cheating.

And so while Ms. Kim was going over the lesson, instead of paying attention, Taehyun closed his eyes and delved into her mind.

He searched and searched for what he needed for a few minutes, opening his eyes and grinning when he found what he was looking for.

He knew exactly where the woman was keeping the answer sheet.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Kai, I need your help.” 

Kai turned, worried at the clear paranoia in the boy's voice. He knew the boy was getting desperate at this point and he could only hope he wasn’t about to do something crazy.

It was clear Taehyun was having a lot of trouble remembering everything and if Kai was being honest he was running out of study tactics to teach the boy.

It must have been frustrating for Taehyun, a boy who was exceedingly smart in everything else to have trouble in just one subject and have everything important in his life hinge on that.

He was expecting something insane, but he couldn’t believe his ears when Taehyun told him his plan.

“What? Hyung, I don't think that's…” He didn't know how to talk sense into the boy who was staring at him pleadingly.

“You helped Yeonjun cheat.” Taehyun reminded him, frowning slightly.

Kai couldn’t argue with that. But still…

“This is different Hyung. This is a full blown test, that was just a quiz. If we get caught…”

“We won't, I promise.” Taehyun said in a rush. “Please…”

“ I don’t know…”

“Kai, I really don’t want this to affect my friendship with you guys. I dont… I dont wanna lose you guys… it’s not just about the party anymore… it’s about my life, Kai… please…”

Kai sighed.

He decided he never wanted to see his Hyung that desperate and scared about losing the only friends he had ever again.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

In hindsight, Taehyun realized he really didn’t need Kai, but he was glad he’d decided to tag along anyways.

Besides he felt more confident with Kai’s telekinesis than he did with his own clumsy hands.

“What brings you two to my office?” Ms. Kim asked amiably.

“I had a few questions and Taehyun is just here for moral support.” Kai explained.

Taehyun smiled nervously as the woman nodded at him in greeting.

He tuned out the rest of the made up conversation taking place in front of him, instead zoning in on the drawer where he knew the answers were kept.

He watched as Kai finished up and walked out, purposely leaving a few books in the room, as the teacher followed him out.

“Heading home, Ms. Kim?” Kai asked, as the teacher walked out.

“Yup, you boys go home, now. Good luck with the test on Monday.”

“Thank you. Yes we sho- Ah wait, I think I left something in your office. May I go grab it?”

“Of course, just make sure to lock the door on your way out.”

And with that the teacher was gone.

Taehyun held his breath as he watched Kai ease the door open once more. He walked in grabbing his books and glanced back at Taehyun.

“Moment of truth…” He whispered, before lifting his hand and frowning in concentration.

Taehyun watched in awe, as the drawer eased open on its own, the sheet of answers flying out. Kai opened one of his books, watching as the answer sheet slowly descended between the pages.

Slamming the book shut, he let his breath out in a rush and ran out, smiling at Taehyun.

As Taehyun closed the door behind him, he smiled back at Kai, unable to believe what they had done.

  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Where the heck is Ryujin tho?👀
> 
> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	20. Secrets

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm late😬  
> BUT  
> We have a few revelations in this chapter! Let's see what yall make of them👀

Kai couldn't think straight.

He still couldn't believe he'd helped Taehyun steal the test answers from Ms. Kim's classroom. Apparently he wasn't the only one who couldn't.

As soon as they'd left the school that day, Kai couldn't stop himself from immediately texting Soobin and coming clean about what he'd done.

It made him feel less guilty, that was for sure, but Soobin was  _ not _ happy.

Soobin hadn't scolded him or anything, but it was clear from the way he seemed to be avoiding Kai.

Kai had waited for Soobin to text him back for what felt like hours and when he finally did, it wasn't what Kai had expected.

Soobin had simply texted him that he had told the others about what had happened.

That meant on Saturday, when they all met up with Jaemin for magic class, he'd have to deal with the awkward glances from his friends.

Taehyun was obviously too preoccupied with other things to notice.

“Kai? Seriously, are you ok?”

Kai was shaken from his thoughts as Ryujin’s concerned voice hit his ears.

He glanced up from where he sat on the grass. What was he doing here again?

Oh right, Jaemin had decided to take class outside so they could use their elemental powers a bit.

He blinked and stared at the flowers clutched tightly in his hands. He was supposed to be trying to make them grow without-

“Kai?”

“Huh?” He replied, finally looking up at Ryujin.

She knelt down in front of him, frowning in concern.

“Are you ok? You're… Spacing out a lot today…”

Kai sighed heavily and dropped his flowers, hanging his head.

“I'm fine. Just… Tired? Nervous? I don't know…”

He felt a hand on his shoulder, as Ryujin chuckled softly.

“You don't have to tell me… Maybe we should take a break.”

“W-wait!” Kai reached out towards her as she moved away, prompting her to stay put and raise an eyebrow, questioningly 

“Yes? You don't want a break?” She asked incredulously.

“No it's not that…”

Kai glanced further into the field they were in and saw the others.

Taehyun and Jaemin were together and both seemed too lost in thought to be making any progress.

Soobin, Yeonjun, and Beomgyu were together but they weren't doing any magic. They seemed to be in an intense discussion, frowns on their faces.

Beomgyu turned momentarily and made eye contact with Kai. Kai immediately turned away from his piercing gaze and glanced up at Ryujin.

“Ah, I see…” Ryujin sighed in understanding at the exchange. “Friend issues? Been there, done that.”

She rose to her feet and reached out a hand to Kai.

“Come on, let's take a walk.”

Kai gratefully took the hand and fell into step with Ryujin.

He glanced back at the others for a second before turning back.

“Shouldn't we let them know where we're going…?” He asked, uncertainly.

“It's ok. Jaemin knows where I'm going.” She said simply.

Kai frowned but didn't ask her to elaborate. 

They walked aimlessly on the sidewalk outside Jaemin’s dance building and as they did so, Kai let himself get lost in his thoughts once more.

Ryujin was a strange person when he thought about it. Both her and Jaemin. But Ryujin was a bigger mystery in his opinion.

For one, Soobin had once told him that Jaemin said Ryujin probably knows more about them than even him.

That in itself was cause for suspicion.

Yet, she had done nothing that made her a suspect for anything.

But then again, she did disappear for a few days. He wondered if he should ask her why she didn't come to school those days.

Another thing that seemed weird was her relationship with Jaemin. Apparently they were a couple, but if Kai thought about it, they really didn't act like it.

They seemed like good friends but that was it. Kai had no idea why they would lie about their relationship like that.

“Are you quite done staring?” Ryujin asked suddenly.

Kai flinched away in embarrassment, but Ryujin just turned to him with a teasing grin.

“I was just messing. What were you thinking about? You can ask.” She said.

Kai smiled slightly and shrugged.

“I was just wondering where you were these past few days.” He said.

“Ah…” Ryujin replied. “I had a bit of a headache, so I decided to take a few days off. What did I miss?”

“Nothing much. We didn't have class when you were gone. “ He told her.

“Oh really? How come?”

“Well, the first day, Jaemin canceled class. And the day after… Me and the guys were having some issues we had to resolve.”

“Same issues you're having today?” Ryujin asked, glancing over at Kai.

Kai sighed and shook his head.

“I guess you could say they're related.” He said.

He knew he definitely couldn't tell her what had happened outright. But he wanted to know what she thought about the situation.

“Ryujin…” He started. “Have you ever done something terrible for a good reason?”

Ryujin glanced over at him in surprise, a small smile pulling at her lips.

“What did you do, Kai?” She said in a teasing tone, but Kai could see the apprehension in her eyes.

“Well, it's not a  _ terrible  _ thing. But it's something I don't think is right, but I did it. Taehyun was having trouble with something and I did it to help him…” Kai trailed off, not wanting to accidentally reveal too much.

“Well, if you did it for a friend, I'm sure everything will be just fine.” Ryujin stated. “And to answer your question, yes. I have been in a situation like that before, but… It looks like things will be ok.”

She gazed at him with a sad smile, her eyes speaking a thousand words that Kai couldn't quite decipher.

“I'm assuming your other friends are mad at you for doing whatever it was you did for Taehyun?” She asked carefully.

Kai sighed and nodded wordlessly.

“Well, I'm sure if you talk it out with them and they realize why you did it, then things should be ok.”

Kai let a small smile settle on his face.

“Thanks, Ryujin. I really hope you're right,”

“Hey, no problem. You can always come to me like this. I can be like your older sister.”

“Did we…” Kai started. “Know each other before?”

Ryujin nodded slowly, sighing.

“We did. I knew Soobin the best, but all of us were like best buddies. Believe it or not, I was probably closer to you guys than I was to Jaemin.”

Kai frowned slightly as she mentioned the boy.

“By the way… What's the deal between you two?” He asked.

Ryujin glanced at him in confusion.

“What do you mean?”

“I know you two aren't actually dating.”

Her mouth dropped open slightly, her eyes widening in surprise.

“Wow… Looks like I underestimated you…”

Kai frowned.

“What's that supposed to mean?”

“Oh nothing…” She said, turning away with a smile. “Just that you're more perceptive than I thought.”

She paused, staring off into the distance thoughtfully, as if deciding how much she should tell Kai.

“You're right. We're not. What gave it away?” She said finally.

“Well, yall really don't act like you're dating. You just act like friends.”

Ryujin nodded wordlessly and continued to stare ahead.

“Why do you guys do that then? Go around telling people you're dating?”

“Well… We have a circumstance… And because of it, the two of us basically have to go around everywhere together. He basically lives in my apartment at this point. So if anyone asks what we are, that's our story.”

It was clear she was hiding something, but Kai didn't push it. However, something didn't make sense about that story.

“So if you two aren't a thing… Then why did Jaemin attack Beomgyu that day?”

Kai was referring to the first day of school, when the boys had first met Jaemin who at the time had seemed like a bully.

Ryujin frowned slightly and sighed.

“Something weird definitely happened that day…” She muttered.

Her staring became even more intense and suddenly she turned her gaze onto Kai.

“Kai, can you keep a secret?” She asked seriously.

Kai was shocked by the change in mood but he nodded.

“You have to promise.” She said sternly.

“I promise.” He said solemnly.

She opened her mouth then shut it and glanced behind her. Her expression became worried and she sighed heavily.

“Maybe I shouldn't tell you. Jaemin is gonna kill me if he finds out…” She muttered.

“Hey…” Kai put a hand on her shoulder and smiled reassuringly. “I won't tell anyone. Not even my friends.”

She nodded slowly and turned back to him.

“Don't tell them we're not actually dating either, ok?”

Kai nodded impatiently.

“So… The first day of school, I was also confused as to why Jaemin did what he did but later on he told me what had happened.” Ryujin began. “He's a spirit rider, meaning he can detect spirits from a mile away. He told me he was going to the front of the school to meet me when he sensed a  _ dark spirit _ .”

She paused, letting that sink in for a second.

“But when he got there…?” Kai prompted.

“Then it was Beomgyu. So he thought it was a spirit possessing him. But when Beomgyu made the girlfriend comment, he thought the spirit must be dormant for some reason, but he didn't have time to figure out why it wasn't taking full control of him, just that he had to stop it before it could. That's why he chased him, but he couldn't get away with it for long without having to explain why he was running all over the place.”

Kai nodded, entranced by the story, confused as to why a dark spirit would possess one of his friends in the first place.

“Anyways, if the human a spirit is possessing gets injured, the spirit can't do anything anymore so it's forced to leave the body of that human. That's why Jaemin needed to twist Beomgyu's wrist. He didn't feel bad until he realized exactly who Beomgyu was. When a human gets possessed, there's an imprint of dark magic on their soul, but when Jaemin visited Beomgyu in the hospital, that imprint wasn't there. The only way that was possible was if Beomgyu was a bearer of magic and if his magic was more powerful than the spirit that tried to possess him. It also made sense why the spirit wasn't able to take full control of Beomgyu.”

Ryujin stopped talking and glanced at Kai.

“That's it.” She said.

Kai let his breath go in a rush of air, intrigued but confused at the same time. Why would Jaemin wanna keep this from them? This meant something was still after them and they had a right to know, didn't they?

What on earth had they gotten themselves into?

Or rather…

Not something they'd gotten themselves into…

Something they'd always been a part of…

“Kai, you can't tell anyone. I know what you're thinking, but me and Jaemin are taking care of it and we'll tell you everything when the time is right.”

Kai just nodded wordlessly, still too stunned to speak.

“Kai, I'm serious. There are… Others who are above us and I wasn't supposed to tell you this…”

Kai nodded once more, frowning when Ryujin's words mirrored something Jaemin had said to them once.

“I won't tell anyone.” He said simply.

Ryujin stopped and stumbled abruptly all of a sudden and Kai just barely grabbed her hand and pulled her up.

She gasped and wrenched her hand away from his a little too harshly. Kai frowned as she stared at both her hands for a few seconds before turning to him.

“We should go back.” She said, her tone the slightest bit worried.

She turned back without looking to see if Kai was following and Kai followed her wordlessly.

His mind was reeling with thoughts and questions.

Something was after them…

But apparently they were stronger than it… 

Kai could only hope that could make up for their lack of experience or memories.

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ryujin is back but she just made things more confusing smh😑
> 
> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	21. Suspicion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ANOTHER CHAPTER!😱  
> Hope yall like this one and hopefully there should be another chapter up today or tomorrow!

Soobin sighed heavily as he threw himself onto the couch in Yeonjun's living room.

He stared at the ceiling intensely as his thoughts ran a mile a minute.

Things just seemed to be getting weirder and weirder and Soobin didn't know what to make of it. Either he was getting super paranoid or something bad was about to happen soon.

Saturday had been a stressful day for him, his mind running around in circles because of what Kai had told him and…

At this point, even Soobin thought he was being a bit too suspicious of Jaemin. But something about how he was acting yesterday made Soobin confused.

He had been super spaced out almost the entire time he was supposed to be teaching them. And at some point, he started getting visibly worried about Ryujin.

But why should he worry about her when she hadn't gone far?

As soon as she and Kai had gone for a walk, a sort of panic came into his eyes.

And when she came back, he immediately ran over to her as soon as she was close enough. He had grabbed her hand, whispered frantically in her ear and dismissed the class abruptly.

Something suspicious was definitely going on between the two and it was confusing Soobin to no end. Should he trust them or not?

On the one hand, they  _ were _ helping them with their magic, but on the other they were withholding information and being secretive.

He was also super worried about Kai. He hadn't meant to ignore him all of Saturday, it had just happened. He simply didn't know what to say to him.

Thankfully, he had discussed things with Yeonjun and Beomgyu and they had decided to meet up at Yeonjun's place today to talk things over with Kai.

They had long since decided it was pointless to try and talk to Taehyun.

His emotions were already all over the place as it was, according to Beomgyu. Besides, he seemed lost in thought most of the time and when he wasn't, his eyes were glued to the answer sheet, frantically memorizing the words on it.

They had told him Kai had told them what had happened but that was it.

Soobin was stressed out to say the least.

He sighed once more, glancing down at his phone.

It had been a half hour since Yeonjun had texted the group chat to meet up at his place. Everyone had shown up except Kai.

He heard soft footsteps coming towards him and he glanced up to see Yeonjun come over and sit down next to him.

“He's still not here.” Yeonjun muttered.

Soobin nodded wordlessly, putting his phone down.

“How's Tae?” He asked.

“He's having Beomgyu test him…” Yeonjun sighed. “I don't know why but… I'm having a really bad feeling about this….”

“It's not just you…” Soobin muttered. “I basically feel like that too.”

Suddenly, the doorbell rang and Yeonjun sighed, standing up.

“That's him.” 

He opened the door, smiling slightly upon seeing their maknae standing there.

“Hi, Hyung… Sorry I'm late…” Kai muttered. “I just-”

But Yeonjun shook his head, cutting him off with a tired smile.

“It's fine, you don't have to explain.” He said as he gestured for him to come inside.

Yeonjun sat back down next to Soobin and Kai sat on the couch in front of them.

Soobin knew it probably felt like an interrogation to Kai, so he smiled slightly to put him at ease.

Kai smiled back nervously and sighed.

“So…” He said.

“So…” Soobin echoed.

There was a tense silence for a few seconds before Kai dropped his gaze suddenly and shook his head.

“Well? Aren't you going to scold me?” He muttered.

“No, Kai, we're not…” Soobin sighed. “Although, we  _ do _ want to know why you did it.”

“It may seem like this discussion is pointless.” Yeonjun said. “After all, you  _ did _ also help me cheat. But that was just one question for a quiz and you did it unknowingly even if you _ did  _ have a feeling. It doesn't seem like you to do something like this…”

“And we know you wouldn't have done it without a good reason, so all we're asking is… What was that reason?”

Kai seemed to be thinking hard about how to respond. His nervous expression vanished, replaced with a sort of determination and he finally met his Hyungs eyes.

“I did it for Tae. If you guys were in my position, I'm sure you would've done the same. He was stressing to no end and he really thought he was gonna lose us… He said it wasn't just about the party anymore, it was about his  _ life _ . I don't know what threats and punishments his parents have given him over the years, but they seem to have worked exactly the way they wanted them to…. He was  _ terrified  _ Hyungs. I didn't know what to do… I just didn't want to see him that scared ever again. I know I shouldn't have done it-”

“That's besides the point…” Yeonjun sighed. “It's ok, we understand.”

“We suspected it was something like that. We knew you wouldn't do something so drastic without a reason.” Soobin said.

“As for knowing you shouldn't have done it…” Yeonjun continued. “The fact of the matter is that it's already done. So now, we have to figure out what to do next.”

“I'm sure you've tried to figure out how to put the paper  _ back _ , am I right?” Soobin asked.

Kai sighed and nodded, his expression a bit more relaxed.

“It's not super thought out but… We could get to school early tomorrow and put it back. I was thinking of bringing you or Beomgyu Hyung with me in case we happen to run into Ms. Kim at some point.”

Soobin nodded, humming thoughtfully.

“We were thinking of that too but… I don't think my power works like that. I can't make someone believe a lie if they've already seen proof against it. Beomgyu is probably a better bet.”

As if on cue, Beomgyu walked into the living room, smiling tiredly and waving at everyone.

“What'd I miss?”

“Not much.” Yeonjun replied. “We were just wrapping up here. You're going with Kai tomorrow, ok? To put the paper back.”

Beomgyu just nodded, smiling at Kai slightly.

“How's Tae?” Soobin asked.

Beomgyu sighed and shook his head.

“He's got the entire sheet memorized but he insists on going over it once more.” 

“Well, let's give him another hour, I guess…” Yeonjun sighed.

“What's happening after that?” Kai asked.

“Jaemin wants to have magic class early today…” Beomgyu replied.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Soobin? You there?”

Soobin flinched as Jaemin's voice brought him back to the present. They were outside the dance building again and Jaemin was supposed to be teaching him how to use his enhanced hearing. They had already gone over his water powers the day before and Soobin had gotten it quite easily. Apparently, this was harder than that.

Or maybe, Soobin just had too much on his mind.

He glanced at Jaemin and sighed.

“Yeah, sorry…” He muttered.

Jaemin frowned in concern.

“Are you sure you're ok? You all seem super out of it these past few days.”

Soobin sighed heavily and nodded.

“Just having a few issues… Nothing we can't handle…” He glanced at Jaemin and frowned slightly. “You seem to be doing much better today…”

Jaemin stepped back and dropped his gaze.

“What do you mean?”

Soobin scoffed and shook his head.

“If we seem out of it, then you've looked like you're on the verge of an anxiety attack. For at least the past week.”

Jaemin sighed and stayed silent for a few seconds.

“Yeah, well… I've had a lot to be anxious about…”

Soobin stared at him for a few seconds.

“Are you gonna tell me what happened? And why Ryujin is gone again today? Or is that another secret?”

Jaemin's expression fell slightly but he kept his eyes on the ground.

“You already know I can't tell you…”

Soobin sighed, feeling a bit bad for saying that when he knew the boy had no choice.

“Yeah, I know. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that.”

But Jaemin shook his head.

“Your reactions are justified. All of yours. And I really wish I could say something…”

Soobin nodded a bit impatiently.

“It's ok, I get it. We've already been over this, you don't have to explain again…”

Jaemin finally looked up and smiled slightly.

“Getting impatient, are we?”

Soobin grinned and nodded.

“This is the last thing I have to learn.”

Jaemin nodded slowly, his expression thoughtful.

“This is basically our last class….”

“We're fast learners.” Soobin said grinning.

“You won't need me anymore after this…” 

Soobin couldn't be sure but besides the slight sadness, it sounded as if Jaemin was actually a little scared.

“Hey, we'll still hang out. Did Beomgyu tell you about his party on Friday?”

“Yes…” Jaemin said, smiling. “But that's not what I'm worried about…”

“Then what is it?” Soobin asked uncertainly.

“Once you guys have learned everything, I was planning on asking if I can tell you guys everything…”

Soobin frowned slightly. Jaemin didn't specify who he would ask, but Soobin suspected that was just another thing he couldn't say.

“Really?” He asked.

“Really… But… I don't think it's gonna happen…”

“Why not?” 

Soobin hoped he didn't sound as whiny as he thought he did but he was just about done with being kept in the dark. He almost wished the cryptic dreams would come back.

“Telling you guys could change a lot of things. And right now our goal is to keep everything as normal as possible.” Jaemin glanced up at Soobin and sighed. “I'm guessing this is just confusing you more?”

Soobin nodded wordlessly.

“Let's just forget about it for now and work on magic.”

“Alright…” Soobin sighed.

He would just have to accept that they wouldn't be getting anything out of Jaemin any time soon.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Ok open your eyes.”

Soobin did just that and couldn't believe what he was seeing.

Jaemin was standing on the other end of the field yet Soobin could hear him clearly as if he was standing right next to him.

At first he couldn't get it right, but after Jaemin told him to close his eyes and focus on his voice it got easier. He didn't even notice that Jaemin had crossed over to the other side until he opened his eyes.

“Gimme a thumbs up if you can hear me.”

Soobin laughed out loud and raised his hand high in the air, flashing Jaemin a thumbs up.

Jaemin came running over and gave him a high five, laughing all the while.

“Good job, Soobin! You got it!”

“Thanks for teaching me, Jaemin! This has been really fun!”

Jaemin smiled widely and Soobin thought that might be the first genuine smile he'd seen on the boy's face.

“I hope we can still hang out after this.”

Soobin grinned back and nodded.

“Class isn't over yet though, Jaemin. You still have to finish teaching the others, remember?”

Jaemin smiled and nodded.

“Take a break Soobin. You earned it.”

“Ah finally.” Soobin said as he sat down in the shade, while Jaemin ran over to the others.

Soobin wasn't even tired but as he leaned against the tree, his eyes fell closed and he was pulled into a dream for the first time in a while.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

_ He was leaning against a tree when he opened his eyes. It was dark but it was as if the plants and magical creatures around him were shimmering softly, giving him just enough light to make out his surroundings. _

_ There was a telescope near him and he smiled tiredly as he began to hum a familiar tune. It was the tune he always used to charm animals but that's not what he was doing this time. _

_ As he hummed, he began to hear a second voice humming along with him. _

_ He turned slightly to see a girl sitting near him, also leaning against the tree. _

_ She turned to him and smiled as they hummed together. _

_ “You know that won't work without human contact, Ryujin.” Soobin said softly. _

_ Ryujin just smiled and wordlessly held out her hand. Soobin grabbed it as they continued to hum. _

_ “Sometimes, I forget you're not actually my little brother…” She said suddenly. _

_ Soobin smiled and rolled his eyes. _

_ “Well, you always treat me like I am. I don't mind it though. Now shut up and keep humming.” _

_ Ryujin did as she was told and after some time, Soobin let go of her hand, stood up and tilted his head back, staring up at the lone star shining in the sky just above the tree. _

_ The star was shining brightly for a few seconds before flickering suddenly. The light returned after a few seconds but Soobin frowned sadly. _

_ “The tune isn't working that well anymore…” _

_ Ryujin hummed in acknowledgement but didn't say anything. _

_ “The star is dying, isn't it?” Soobin asked softly. _

_ Ryujin sighed as she stood and nodded. _

_ “Yes.” _

_ Soobin turned and frowned at her. _

_ “You're not supposed to say that, Ryu!” _

_ “What do you mean?” Ryujin asked in confusion. “It's dying. Would you rather I lie to you and tell you that it'll live?” _

_ “Well, no…” Soobin said slowly. “But you're supposed to tell me that everything will be ok…” _

_ “Why?” _

_ “To make me feel better…” _

_ Ryujin frowned in confusion, stepping closer to Soobin and staring up at the star. _

_ “But why would that make you feel better? When both you and I know everything  _ won't  _ be ok?” _

_ “I don't know, ok?!” Soobin said in frustration. “It just does!” _

_ Ryujin made a face that said she thought Soobin was really dumb and stepped away. _

_ “Humans are weird…” _

_ Soobin frowned in annoyance. _

_ “Spirits are weirder!” He retorted. _

_ “Hey, you take that back!” Ryujin yelled. _

_ But Soobin grinned and shook his head. _

_ “Never!” And with that, he took off running through the trees, laughing when he heard Ryujin following him. _

_ “Yah! You get back here, Choi Soobin!” _

_ Soobin didn't reply, only laughed once more and continued running. _

_ He glanced back to see how far away she was, only to crash right into someone else. _

_ He slipped and fell to the ground, gasping when he saw that the other person had fallen as well. _

_ “Oh, I'm so sorry, Soobinnie!”  _

_ The person stood and Soobin now saw that it was his Hyung, Jungkook. _

_ “It's ok, Kook Hyung! It was my fault anyway.” He said, taking the hand Jungkook offered. _

_ Jungkook shook his head, pulling Soobin to his feet. _

_ “I should've been paying attention.” He muttered, eyes downcast. “Are you ok, Soobin?” _

_ Soobin smiled and nodded. _

_ “I didn't get hurt.” He glanced at his Hyung and frowned. “Are  _ you  _ ok? You look worried…” _

_ Jungkook forced a laugh and smiled at the boy. _

_ “You're almost as bad as Beomgyu.” _

_ “Or you're just bad at hiding your emotions.” Soobin said grinning. _

_ Jungkook smiled, then sighed, shaking his head. _

_ “Just worried about Baekhyun…” He admitted. “He left the island two days ago to find those dark spirits. And we still haven't heard back from him… I'm worried something bad must have happened to him.” _

_ “Baekhyun Hyung is strong.” Soobin said. “Don't worry, he'll be back soon.” _

_ “Hope you're right…” Jungkook said, smiling slightly. “Now get going, Ryu is catching up.” _

_ Soobin laughed and waved bye to his Hyung as he ran off. _

_ “Bye Binnie! Don't get too close to the edge!” _

_ “Got it!” _

_ Soobin ran through the trees, laughing every time he heard Ryujin say something to him. At this point, she was laughing too and throwing around playful threats. _

_ Soobin couldn't remember the last time he'd had so much fun. With the way things were recently, everyone was always in a grim and serious mood, including himself. The attacks just weren't stopping and they always had to be alert, but thanks to a few brave souls, like Baekhyun, things were slowly getting better. _

_ He couldn't wait until Baekhyun and his team got back so he could thank them personally. _

_ Things were far from ok, but they would get there eventually, he was sure of it. _

_ Soobin was so lost in thought, that he didn't even notice when the trees began to thin and then disappeared all together. _

_ Ryujin couldn't follow him out of the forest, he knew that and he would've turned back immediately if he hadn't bumped into someone else right at that moment. _

_ He slipped and fell again, but the person in front of him didn't budge, as if they were a statue. _

_ Soobin quickly rose to his feet and observed the person, whose back was toward him. _

_ “I'm so sorry, are you ok?” He asked hesitantly as he stood there. _

_ The person turned to face him and Soobin's face lit up in surprise. _

_ There was a familiar face, framed by silver hair, fierce eyes staring through the shiny bangs. _

_ “Baekhyun Hyung!” Soobin said in excitement. “Where have you been? Everyone's worried about you!” _

_ But Baekhyun didn't say anything, just stood there staring at Soobin curiously. _

_ Soobin tilted his head in confusion. _

_ “Baekhyun Hyung?” _

_ Baekhyun smiled suddenly as he stepped closer to Soobin. He looked like an imposing war general from up close. _

_ Black armor covered his body, a sword gripped loosely in one hand. There was a thin red bandana tied around his head.  _

_ All this was normal but what worried Soobin was the blood dripping from his other arm. The armor had been ripped away, revealing a deep scratch he hadn't noticed before. _

_ “Hyung… You're hurt…”  _

_ “Worried about me?” Baekhyun asked in a low voice. _

_ Soobin didn't like the way he spoke, almost in a teasing manner. _

_ “Of course…” He muttered. _

_ “You should probably worry about yourself.”  _

_ “What do you mean?” _

_ Baekhyun’s grin grew wider as he stepped ever closer. _

_ “You're a bit far from home, aren't you?” _

_ Just as Soobin had decided to run back into the safety of the forest, Baekhyun's injured arm shot out suddenly, his hand enclosing itself around Soobin's throat. _

_ Soobin's eyes widened as the man pinned him to the ground, cutting off his air. _

_ He stared up into the emotionless eyes, pleadingly even though he knew it was useless. _

_ Just as he thought it was the end for him, he heard a voice. _

_ “Soobin!” _

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been some time since we had a dream chapter...👀
> 
> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	22. Tension

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I almost didn't finish this in time but here it is😅

Soobin's eyes flew open, a stuttering gasp leaving him as his hand flew to his neck. He dropped his hand slowly, his heart pounding as Ryujin's panicked voice still echoed in his ears, following him out of the dream.

As he let his hand fall, he noticed the glowing bracelet, its light dying down slowly. It had been so long, Soobin had almost forgotten about the existence of the bracelet.

“Hyung.”

Soobin flinched away at the sound of Beomgyu's voice, still shaken from the dream. He glanced up to see the boy staring worriedly at him.

“Beomgyu…” He gasped. “I- I just-”

“Shh!” Beomgyu put a finger to his mouth. “I know. But keep it down for now.” He said, hooking a thumb over his shoulder.

Soobin glanced behind Beomgyu to see Jaemin walking back from inside the dance building.

“Did he see our bracelets glow?” He asked.

Beomgyu shook his head.

“He went inside to take a call.”

“Whose?” Soobin asked as Beomgyu helped him to his feet.

“Ryujin's.”

Soobin nodded slowly, still lost in thought.

“I have to tell you guys my dream…” He muttered as he saw the others getting ready to leave.

“You might have to wait until tomorrow after school… Or maybe during lunch? If Jaemin doesn't join us…”

It could have just been Soobin's imagination but Beomgyu's gaze seemingly darkened when he said Jaemin's name.

Soobin shook his head, deciding he must be imagining it. Their bond was too strong for Beomgyu to be suspicious or angry with him.

“Why not today?” Soobin asked.

“Taehyun's parents just called.” Beomgyu sighed. “They want him back home right now.”

Soobin sighed and nodded.

They had all planned on going back to Yeonjun's place after class, but now it looked like they were all going back to their own homes.

Soobin walked in a physical silence, but his thoughts were still ringing loudly.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Beomgyu really regretted not sleeping all of the previous night. Especially when he knew he would have to wake up extra early the next day.

But he knew that he wouldn't be able to sleep even if he tried.

He was just so anxious about what he had to do the next day that his mind wouldn't shut up, telling him all the possible ways things could go wrong.

He knew that if things went wrong, it was all going to fall on him since he was the one who had to keep watch.

And so with his thoughts reeling, he probably got only three hours of sleep max.

He was sure it showed, because Kai kept glancing over at him as they walked to school.

The sun was just waking up and Beomgyu didn't like the lack of light as it just made him sleepier.

“Hyung?” Kai asked softly.

“Hm?” 

“You didn't sleep last night, did you?”

Beomgyu sighed and shook his head.

“I slept, just not enough…”

Kai hummed sympathetically and placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Don't worry, Hyung. Things will work out…”

Beomgyu scoffed and glanced at the boy. It was quite endearing, the way he was trying to act brave for his Hyung. And while it was appreciated, Beomgyu could see right through him.

“I know you're also worried Kai. Can't hide your emotions from me, remember?”

Kai grinned.

“Wasn't trying to. Being worried is normal, Hyung. But that doesn't mean we can't pull this off. In fact, we're quite literally the only ones who have a chance.”

Beomgyu allowed himself a small smile as he nodded.

“Can't argue with that.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Beomgyu stood in front of Ms. Kim's office, trying his best not to look out of place.

He wasn't doing anything suspicious, there was no reason for anyone to look this way.

Even though he was worried out of his mind, he couldn't deny that the two of them had gotten lucky. 

They were super early after all, so that meant there weren't that many students and teachers wandering around the halls.

Ms. Kim was probably at school though, because when they got to her office, the door was unlocked.

They had completely forgotten about the fact that the door could be locked, but thankfully they didn't need to worry about that, even if it did mean she could be close by.

Beomgyu really wished Kai would hurry up and come out, but he knew he was probably trying to make it look as normal as possible. He couldn't just leave the paper on her desk. He had to find the specific drawer it was in before and put it back exactly the way he found it.

“Beomgyu?”

Beomgyu flinched as a familiar voice hit his ears. He had been so lost in thought that he hadn't seen Jaemin walk up to him.

Beomgyu stared at him in shock.

_ Ah shit, what now…? _

He knew he couldn't exactly use his powers anymore, because Jaemin would know exactly what he was doing and stop him in his tracks. But he also knew this looked hella suspicious and he had to somehow talk his way out of this.

Maybe Soobin should've come instead.

But there was no time to think about that.

“Oh, Jaemin… What're you doing here so early?”

Jaemin gave him a strange look.

“I always come this early… What're  _ you  _ doing here so early?” He asked.

Beomgyu was just about to respond when Kai finally came out of the office.

“Beomgyu, I-” He stopped short when he saw Jaemin standing there.

“Kai? You too?” Jaemin paused, a look of confusion on his face. “Wait… What were you doing in Ms. Kim's office?”

Beomgyu frowned, losing his cool suddenly.

He probably would've been more calm if Jaemin hadn't been so suspicious these days. But as it was, he was always doing weird things and not telling them why, so Beomgyu would do the same.

“It's none of your business, Jaemin.” Beomgyu said simply, as he grabbed Kai’s hand and began to walk away.

“Hey.” Jaemin said, moving to block their path.

His eyes were narrowed as he stared at them for a few seconds.

“Seriously… What were you doing in there?”

“Why don't you back off Jaemin? We don't have to tell you everything. You, of all people, should leave us alone if we don't wanna tell you something.” Beomgyu said, glaring.

Jaemin’s eyes widened as he stepped back.

“Damn, ok, I-” 

“Jaemin, there you are!”

All three boys turned at the sound of Ryujin’s voice. 

She stood there, staring at Jaemin and ignoring the other two. She frantically gestured for him to follow her and Jaemin spared the two one more confused glance before he went with her.

“Whoa Hyung…”Kai muttered.

But Beomgyu just shrugged and began walking away, pulling Kai along with him.

“What else could I have done? Besides, he's always keeping stuff from us. It's really getting annoying.”

“You're right…” Kai sighed. “Things could've been much worse though and I'm glad things worked out.”

Beomgyu smiled at the boy.

“Now all we need is for Taehyun to pass his test.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“I passed…” Taehyun muttered.

“Tae, that's great!” Soobin said, as they all walked to the rooftop for lunch.

“Hey, lighten up, man!” Yeonjun said, throwing an arm around the boy's shoulder. “Why do you still look like a kicked puppy?”

Taehyun let out a short laugh, shaking his head.

“I'm just… So relieved. One less thing for my parents to hold over my head…”

“Good for you, kiddo.” Kai said playfully. “Wait, how do you know you passed? You didn't get your grade back yet…”

Taehyun shrugged.

“I mean, I knew all the answers… Although I made sure to get a few wrong so it wouldn't look suspicious.”

“Good call.” Beomgyu said.

“Oh by the way, how did it go? Putting the paper back?” Taehyun asked, glancing over at Kai and Beomgyu as they finally made it to the rooftop.

Beomgyu sighed as he sat down and waited for everyone else to get settled before continuing.

“Well, we did it… But you'll never guess who we ran into…”

“Who? Not Jaemin….” Soobin said.

“It  _ was _ Jaemin.” Kai stated.

Yeonjun's mouth dropped open, eyes wide.

“Oh my God… How did you get out of that?”

“Well… Beomgyu Hyung knew he wouldn't be able to make him forget so he basically just told him to back off.”

“What?” Taehyun asked. “No way… Aren't you two like best buddies or something?”

Beomgyu sighed and dropped his gaze.

“I don't know… Besides, it's not like he tells us things if he doesn't want to…”

Soobin frowned slightly at that.

“It's not that he doesn't want to… He  _ can't… _ ” He said.

“Hey, whose side are you on?” Beomgyu asked.

“I thought he was on our side…” Soobin sighed.

The boys fell silent for a bit, before Taehyun finally spoke up.

“Hey, didn't you have a dream yesterday?” He asked Soobin. “Our bracelets were glowing…”

“Oh yeah…” Soobin sighed and quickly told them what had happened in the dream.

“Wait, wait wait…” Beomgyu said once Soobin was done. “Does this mean Ryujin is a  _ spirit? _ ”

“It  _ is  _ implied…” Taehyun muttered.

“Ryujin told me she was closest to you, Soobin Hyung…” Kai said, somewhat hesitantly.

“And Jaemin told me that she knows more about us than even him.” Soobin replied.

“Ok guys, let's sort this out.” Taehyun said, gathering everyone's attention.

Soobin couldn't help but smile at the way he was trying to figure everything out once more. He had missed that side of Taehyun for the past few days. It made him feel like things were justified even if it was wrong of them to do.

Soobin knew that each and every one of them would do absolutely anything to make each other happy.

“Here are the things we can assume from the dream…” He started. “First, that Soobin and Ryujin were friends at some point. Second, that Ryujin is most likely a spirit. Another thing I'm assuming is that your humming was somehow healing the dying star. Not sure why, but we can definitely assume that the star is important.”

“If Ryujin is a spirit, it would make sense why she's always around Jaemin.” Beomgyu said.

“Right…” Taehyun muttered. “I wish there was some way we could figure out more about spirits and spirit riders… The obvious way would be to ask Jaemin… But I have a feeling he won't be willing to tell us…”

“Also, Jungkook and Baekhyun… Two more people we must have known… Yeonjun said. “But again, Jaemin probably won't tell us about them…”

“By the way guys… Can we all meet up at Yeonjun's again today?” Beomgyu asked.

“You know my parents don't mind.” Yeonjun stated. “But why?”

“I've got something to tell you guys but I don't wanna say it here…”

Kai glanced over at Beomgyu slightly and sighed.

“I also have something I wanted to tell you all.” He confessed.

“Alright, I'm down.” Soobin said. “Tae?”

Taehyun smiled and nodded.

“I'll let my parents miss me a bit more.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Soobin was the first one out of the school as usual and despite everything, he really wasn't expecting anything weird to happen.

He was fully expecting to just wait on the steps leading up to the school by himself but when he got there he saw that someone else was already waiting there.

A boy was sitting on the steps, leaning against the railing, his back towards Soobin. Soobin frowned, as the boy looked slightly familiar from behind.

He was fully intending to keep to himself but he suddenly noticed the way the boy was gripping the railing with one shaking hand.

Soobin couldn't ignore the sudden need to help and he rushed forward only for his mouth to fall open in shock when he realized it was Jaemin sitting there.

Soobin paused, unsure and took in what he was seeing.

Jaemin didn't look ok at all.

He looked like he should've been sent home hours ago.

It wasn't hot outside at all, but the boy was sweating as if he were in a desert. His eyes were closed, a pained frown on his face as he held onto the railing as if it was a lifeline.

His other arm was wrapped around his stomach and he was breathing a bit too fast for comfort.

As Soobin watched, he let out a small groan, his grip around the railing tightening slightly.

Soobin sighed heavily.

They were all in a weird relationship with the boy at the moment, but he couldn't just leave him here when he was clearly sick. He was sure the others wouldn't do something like that either and so he hesitantly reached a hand out and gently placed it on the boy's shoulder.

Jaemin barely seemed to notice, his eyes still shut.

Just as he was about to call out to the boy, another voice caught his attention.

“Soobin? What happened?”

Soobin glanced up to see that the others had arrived. They were all staring at Jaemin, worry in their gazes.

Soobin sighed and moved away from Jaemin for a second, running up the few steps over to his friends.

“I don't know what happened. He was like this when I got here…” He explained.

Beomgyu frowned and immediately rushed forward, the others following.

“Jaemin? Hey…” He said hesitantly.

Jaemin didn't respond, making Beomgyu's frown grow deeper. He reached out and shook the boy a little. He groaned softly but finally opened his eyes.

He looked confused for a few seconds, his eyes hazy and unfocused.

“Beomgyu…?” He muttered. “What're you doing here?”

His words were slightly slurred and Soobin shared a worried glance with the others.

“What're  _ you  _ doing here?” Beomgyu asked, his voice quiet and hesitant. “We were gonna go home when we found you here… Are you ok?”

“I'm fine…” He whispered, dropping his gaze. “Just… I'm fine, ok…”

But Beomgyu shook his head.

“Clearly, you're not. You should've gone home if you felt sick.” He said sternly.

Jaemin closed his eyes again and shook his head slowly.

“Can't…”

“Well, then where's Ryujin? Shouldn't she take care of you?”

“She went home early… She doesn't know…”

“Why did she go home? Is she sick too?” Beomgyu asked 

“No…” Jaemin paused. “Yes? I don't know…”

“Hey, open your eyes.” Beomgyu ordered, a sudden anger in his tone.

Jaemin obeyed, shocking everyone when a few tears rolled down his cheeks.

“Jaemin, what the heck happened? You were fine this morning.” Beomgyu asked, a desperate undertone to his voice.

But Jaemin only shook his head.

“I- I shouldn't have pushed myself… I thought I could… Stop them...Ryujin warned me to stop… She had to leave so-”

“Shh, it's ok, you don't have to explain.” Beomgyu sighed, knowing the boy's words were only confusing everyone.

“I messed up…” He muttered softly. “And I can't do shit to fix it… You guys are in danger… Your bracelets…”

“Wait, what about our bracelets?” Beomgyu asked.

Jaemin shook his head wearily.

“Just stay safe, you guys… I can't say anything… I'm so sorry…”

Beomgyu shook his head, sighing heavily.

“Alright, whatever. Where does Ryujin live? We'll take you to her place.”

At this Jaemin's eyes widened in fear as he shook his head frantically.

“Not Ryu’s… I can't go there…”

Beomgyu turned to Yeonjun desperately, asking the silent question. Thankfully, he nodded solemnly, clearly worried for the boy.

“Ok, we're taking you to Yeonjun's.”

“You don't have to…” He muttered.

“I know that, but I'm still gonna.” Beomgyu said simply. 

He turned to Yeonjun once more.

“Can you ask your mom to bring the car? I don't think he can walk…”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Is your friend ok?”

Yeonjun sighed as his mother softly asked the question. He really didn't know to be honest.

“I don't know…” He muttered, as the two of them watched the others.

Jaemin was lying on Yeonjun's bed, answering a series of questions relayed by Kai, while the maknae examined him. The others were crowded around, watching worriedly.

“Maybe he should stay the night…” His mom said.

“Maybe…”

“Should I call his parents?”

“Uh, no.” Yeonjun said, turning to face her. “He… He already told them…”

If his mother noticed the hesitancy in his voice, she didn't show it as she nodded solemnly and began to leave.

“Let me know if he needs anything.”She said, and left the room.

Yeonjun sighed heavily and joined the others.

“How is he?” He asked Kai.

“Not good.” Kai said. “He's definitely running a fever. Showing symptoms of severe exhaustion which doesn't make sense, since there's little possibility of him exerting himself to this extent in such a short time…”

“I'm fine… You don't have to examine me...” Jaemin whispered.

“Right…” Kai sighed. “He's also showing symptoms of a concussion… Which is also strange, since he said he hasn't hit his head.”

“We can't trust what he says.” Beomgyu muttered under his breath.

Kai shot him an angry glare, the message clear in his eyes.  _ I know, but now is not the time. _

Beomgyu sighed and dropped his gaze. Thankfully, Jaemin showed no sign that he had heard what he said.

“Besides that, I didn't find any physical evidence that he hit his head.” Kai said. “Needless to say, something is definitely wrong with him but I don't know what.”

“And if anyone were to know, it would be you.” Taehyun pointed out. “Maybe it's time to consider that he's not sick… At least not a normal sickness… Meaning his condition has something to do with magic…”

“Not magic…” Jaemin muttered. “Leave it alone, you guys, I'm fine.”

Before anyone could object, Yeonjun's mom opened the door.

“Yeonjun… A girl named Ryujin is at the door… She says she's Jaemin's girlfriend? Should I let her in?”

“Ryu?” Jaemin muttered. “Let her in…”

Yeonjun turned to his mom and nodded.

She left the room and returned a few seconds later with Ryujin.

“Oh my God, Jae…” She muttered, immediately rushing to Jaemin as Yeonjun's mom left the room again.

“This is what happens when you don't listen to me.” She said, anger and worry in her voice.

“I'm sorry…” Jaemin muttered as he slowly sat up. “But tell me what happened.”

Ryujin glanced over at the boys and leaned forward to whisper something in Jaemin's ear.

“Really?” Jaemin muttered, a small smile on his face. “That's a relief.”

“I told you she'd be able to deal with it. You didn't have to do it. Let the others take care of that stuff.”

The boys gave each other confused looks but were kinda used to the confusion at this point.

“I wanted to do it because I owe them big time.” Jaemin glanced over at the boys as he said this and looked away immediately.

“Come on, Jae, we should go.” Ryujin said as she helped him up.

“Thanks guys…” Jaemin said simply as the two left the room.

The boys really didn't know what to say and so in the end, the two left without any more words being exchanged.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“What?!” Beomgyu shouted as Kai finished explaining the conversation he had with Ryujin on Saturday.

“Hyung, keep it down!”

“What do you mean, keep it down?!” Beomgyu protested. “You're telling me I was possessed by a dark spirit and that's why Jaemin attacked me!”

“You all know what that means, don't you?” Taehyun asked, his voice serious. “It means we're still being hunted by who knows what.”

“Well, we know now.” Yeonjun stated. “Apparently, we're being hunted by dark spirits.”

“But why doesn't Jaemin just tell us? What difference would it make?” Soobin asked. “if anything, we'd be better prepared if he's not around to save us!”

“Speaking of that, I'm positive something involving dark spirits happened today. And Jaemin probably tried to fight them on his own.” Taehyun said.

“This is insane…” Soobin said. “He's not helping us by keeping things from us.”

“Not only is he keeping things from us, he's also lying to our faces.” Beomgyu said suddenly. “Besides lying to us about him and Ryujin, he also lied about not knowing the people from your dream, Hyung.” 

“What? Really? How do you know?” Soobin asked.

“Our last day of class with him, he went inside to take a call when you were asleep. I wanted to say thanks to him so I followed him inside but I ended up over hearing his conversation. He definitely mentioned Lisa and Namjoon. When we asked about them before, he completely denied their existence!”

“I really don't like where this is headed…” Yeonjun muttered.

“None of us do…” Taehyun sighed. “But we have to come to a decision. I, for one, think we should ditch him. I can't be his friend when we're all tied up in something bigger than ourselves. If he can't divulge helpful information to us then why should we humor him with a trivial friendship. Clearly, it doesn't mean much to him.”

“I'm also on board. I don't like this one bit.” Kai said.

“It's annoying when I know I can't trust a single word out of his mouth.” Soobin muttered. “Let's do it.”

“Alright, I'm in too.” Yeonjun said.

Everyone turned to Beomgyu and he sighed, lifting up his phone suddenly.

There was a simple text from Jaemin.

**Jaemin:** I'm taking the week off, but I'll see u on Friday at ur party😊

“We can ditch him but…” Beomgyu said. “Let's do it after the party…”

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Right decision or wrong decision?👀
> 
> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


	23. The Party (and the falling out)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HEYYYY EVERYONE!  
> it's been nearly four months...  
> AND ITS OFFICIALLY BEEN A YR SINCE I STARTED WRITING THIS!  
> it's been a rough ride but hopefully things get better!  
> sry for the wait :(  
> BUT I HOPE YALL LIKE THIS

“Soobin? Are you ready? You’re going to be late!”

Soobin sighed as he glanced back to see his mother peeking in through his door, a gentle frown on her face.

“Your friends are waiting outside.” She told him.

Soobin sighed internally and gave her a hesitant smile.

“I’ll be out in a sec mom.” He said, shortly.

His mom stood there for a few more seconds, looking as if she wanted to say something else, but sighed softly and left with a simple nod.

Once she was gone, Soobin sighed heavily, glancing down at the bracelet clenched in his hand.

After the boys had that strange encounter with Jaemin, they hadn’t been wearing their bracelets as much as they used to. They still wore them to school, wanting to avoid questions from Jaemin and Ryujin.

But other than that, they’d basically ditched the bracelets.

Soobin had to admit that the feeling was very freeing. He felt more at ease. He didn’t have to question his every move whenever he used his power.

And he had been using his power a lot more than he used to. Mostly just to convince his mother to let him do things she otherwise wouldn’t let him. Nothing bad, just one too many sleepovers at Yeonjun’s place.

The others had also been using their powers more often that week and they also seemed more at ease.

And while Soobin couldn’t deny the free feeling, he also felt a strange anxiety that had him peeking over his shoulder at an unknown threat.

What that unknown threat was exactly, he couldn’t say. 

For all he knew, it was probably more than one thing that was putting him on edge.

The possibility of dark spirits hunting them for god knows what reason, Jaemin’s strange behavior, even his mom’s knowing glances.

He didn’t know how the others were taking this whole thing but he knew them well enough to know that they weren’t completely at ease either.

Shaking his head sharply, he sighed once more before fastening the bracelet around his wrist.

He stared at it for a few more seconds before standing.

With any luck, this would be the last day he’d have to wear it. And by extension, the last day of their friendship with Jaemin.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The boys insisted on walking to the roller rink by themselves, despite their parents' offers to drive them.

Beomgyu was already there with his mom and the other boys didn’t want to wait for their parents to see the birthday boy.

The parents were first going to make a stop at the bakery and get cake for everyone before going to the rink and the boys would rather go by themselves.

With just a little help from Soobin, it wasn’t all that hard to convince them.

The sun shone brightly down on the boys as they arrived at the roller rink and rushed in.

Soobin smiled when he caught sight of Beomgyu with his mom, completely oblivious to the two maknaes rushing towards him.

He laughed slightly when Taehyun and Kai tackled him from behind, nearly making him fall to the ground.

“Tae! Kai!” Beomgyu exclaimed, grinning as he turned around.

He glanced up to see Soobin and Yeonjun and waved happily.

“Hi, Hyungs!”

“Hey kiddo! Happy birthday! You’re finally 16!” Soobin said.

“Now you can join the big boys.” Yeonjun said, fondly ruffling the boy’s hair.

Beomgyu rolled his eyes and shoved his hand away, grinning.

“As if I’d want to.” He said. “Anyways, whatcha got there?”

He grinned as he pointed to the gift bags the boys were holding.

Soobin smiled as he handed it over. It wasn’t anything special, just a blue hoodie that Soobin thought would suit the boy. Soobin knew Beomgyu didn’t care too much for presents. Just them coming to the party was enough for him.

The others handed over their bags as well and Beomgyu’s grin only grew.

“I’ll open these later when I go back home.”

“Here, give them to me.” His mom spoke up, as she watched the scene with a smile on her face. “Why don’t you five go hang out in the arcade? You’re here quite early so we still have some time before the other guests start arriving.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Soobin watched silently as Yeonjun and the others crowded around a claw machine game. It was probably the oldest thing there but it had caught the attention of the boys as Yeonjun insisted he  _ almost _ had it.

Though there was a smile on his face as he watched the others laugh and gasp whenever their Hyung got close, the ever present anxiety has decided to creep up on him once again and wouldn’t leave him alone.

He couldn’t be sure but he was pretty sure he wasn’t the only one feeling that way.

Yeonjun’s eyes were bright with excitement, but his smile was forced too.

A smile tugged at Taehyun’s lips but his eyes were worried.

Kai’s expression shone like the sun but his brows were tense as if he were deep in thought.

Beomgyu looked content and at peace but his gaze was dark and stormy.

The fact of the matter was that  _ none _ of them could deny the thoughts at the back of their mind.

Soobin shook himself from his thoughts just as Beomgyu had enough of the claw game and walked over to where he was standing.

His smile grew as he walked towards his Hyung. He leaned against the wall next to him, arms crossed.

“Having fun?”

Soobin smirked slightly at the sarcastic undertone in the question.

“Of course.” He replied, using the same tone. “You?”   
  


Beomgyu’s smile dropped as he glared into the distance.

“I’m having the time of my life.” He said monotonously.

The two fell silent for a few seconds before Beomgyu sighed and moved away from the wall, uncrossing his arms.

“But anyways…” Beomgyu paused, seemingly thinking hard about what he wanted to say next. “Don’t… worry too much, yeah?”

Soobin just smiled and shook his head.

“That obvious?” He muttered.

“It’s not just you…” Beomgyu sighed, glancing back at the other three who were still glued to the game. “I get it… but… we all agreed this is the best decision.”

“Doesn’t mean we can’t worry about it.”

“Yeah, I’m not saying you can’t worry. I’m worried too…” He admitted. “But there’s really no point…”

Soobin nodded. Beomgyu was right. Worrying wouldn’t stop the inevitable.

A heavy silence followed and in the end, Soobin just sighed and dropped his gaze.

Beomgyu came forward and put a gentle hand on his shoulder.

“Don’t let it overwhelm you, yeah?” He glanced behind Soobin for a second and sighed softly, before bringing his gaze back. “I gotta go say hi to the other guests. Don’t isolate yourself, hang out with the others, ok?”

Soobin nodded, smiling slightly for Beomgyu’s sake. Beomgyu smiled back, patting him once on the shoulder before walking away towards the front of the rink.

Soobin’s smile faded as he watched him go. 

Shaking his head, he turned away and finally joined the other three.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Soobin found that his anxiety only grew when the five of them weren’t together. 

Every time one of them had to leave the group for one reason or another, Soobin would find himself glancing around, anxiously awaiting their return.

Beomgyu was mostly gone, going back and forth between their little group and attending to the arriving guests.

His mother continually told him that he didn’t have to greet everyone right away and that he should spend more time with his friends, but he kept insisting that it was rude not to.

At this point, Soobin didn’t care if it was rude, he just wanted Beomgyu to stay put so he wouldn’t have to keep worrying.

As it was, even Soobin knew that really nothing would ease his anxiety at this point.

“Soobin?”

Soobin flinched and turned his head at his Hyung’s call. Looking up, he saw that the boy was standing, skates on, as he leaned against the wall, concern in his gaze.

Soobin blinked and glanced around when he realized the others were gone.

“They’re already in the rink.” Yeonjun stated, a forced grin on his face. “Need help with those?”

Soobin glanced down at his own skates and shook his head, forcing a short laugh.

“Wow…” He muttered, quietly as he strapped them on himself, wondering why he was so nervous.

“You’re spacing out a lot today.” Yeonjun commented as the two of them made their way to the rink.

“I don’t see why…” Soobin sighed in frustration. “Something doesn’t feel right about this, Hyung.”

Yeonjun nodded thoughtfully as they slowed to a stop right at the entrance. The two silently watched the guests skate around, laughing in delight. Soobin smiled softly at the sight of Taehyun and Kai supporting Beomgyu as they slowly travelled across the rink.

“Well… what do you wanna do about it? Do you wanna go back on our decision?” Yeonjun asked.

The tone wasn’t accusing. It was just questioning. As if Yeonjun really just wanted to understand why Soobin felt this way.

But the only problem was, Soobin didn’t  _ know _ why he was feeling this way either.

And there really was no reason to feel this way.

Jaemin was sus and so they had to ditch him and the bracelets once and for all.

But something bad was going to happen, Soobin was sure of it.

As if spurred by the conversation, a dreadfully familiar voice hit his ears at that second.

“Soobin! Yeonjun!”

The boys shared a look before fully turning around to see that Jaemin had arrived along with Ryujin. Both were smiling brightly, probably the brightest Soobin had ever seen. 

That only served to make him feel worse about the entire thing.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Whoa, be careful!”

Beomgyu only laughed harder despite the maknaes continuous warnings that he shouldn’t move too fast when he had absolutely no idea how to skate. He had already crashed into them several times, even bringing them down with him a few times. He knew he’d be sore in the morning but for now, he didn’t care too much.

But although he smiled and laughed with ease, in the back of his mind, he knew exactly what he was purposely ignoring.

He wasn’t the only one.

He knew that.

Ever since his friends had arrived, he could feel their overwhelming emotions along with his own.

Taehyun and Kai were mostly just feeling a sort of tense anticipation. They were nervous but that was it.

Yeonjun was the same along with slight confusion and worry.

Soobin was all over the place. Fear, guilt, determination.

Beomgyu wanted to help them all sort out their emotions but as it was, he wasn’t sure exactly how he felt about this situation either.

Jaemin was doing whatever he could but at the end of the day, the five of them didn’t think it was enough to help them.

As Taehyun said before, why humor him with a trivial friendship when he wouldn’t tell them a thing?

Beomgyu firmly believed this was the right thing to do but sometimes…

Sometimes he would see the Jaemin that visited him in the hospital and told him his life story.

He saw the Jaemin that tore off his bracelet before it could try and kill him.

He saw the Jaemin that smiled proudly whenever any of them mastered their powers.

But they had to do this.

They had to.

They were tied up in something huge and they couldn’t deal with these things right now.

Beomgyu was shaken from his thoughts as his feet slipped beneath him once more, sending him crashing into Kai.

“Ah, Hyung, seriously…” Kai chuckled as Taehyun gently pulled him away from the maknae.

Taehyun stared at the boy thoughtfully for a few seconds before shaking his head and smiling as they continued their slow journey.

“You’re thinking again.” He stated softly after a while.

Beomgyu shot him an irritated look, but the boy was unphased.

“Stay out of my head, Tae.” he muttered halfheartedly.

“I’m not reading your thoughts.” Taehyun sighed. “I don’t need to.”

The boys fell silent again and for a while, Beomgyu tried to ignore everything again. Tried to find some semblance of peace but he suddenly came to the shocking realization that he barely knew what that felt like.

The closest feeling to peace and happiness he had felt was when the five of them had first gotten back together, but that didn’t last very long.

Were they just… destined to never be at peace? To never be completely happy?

“They’re here…”

Beomgyu raised his head sharply at the sound of Kai’s resigned voice, eyes settling on the very person he… wanted to see? Didn’t want to see? He honestly didn’t know anymore…

“Well…” Taehyun sighed as he began leading the two over to where the newcomers were standing. “Let’s go say hi…”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

As Beomgyu expected, none of the five boys seemed to be able to look Jaemin in the eye. 

Other than that, Beomgyu had to praise them on their acting skills.

Everyone smiled and talked as if they were still best buddies and there was no tension whatsoever.

It might seem like there was no point in the way they were basically leading him on, but Beomgyu felt that it was important.

After all, he didn’t want to ruin the party. He wanted their friendship to end on a good note.

How they were supposed to do that he had no idea.

But once they completely left their bracelets behind, the five expected that Jaemin would leave them alone on his own.

And so for now, they were friends.

“Jaemin…” Beomgyu said once the two of them were back in the rink. 

Jaemin had insisted on assisting the boy while the others went to get snacks with Ryujin. Kai and Soobin were still hanging out in the rink as well but were on the other side, leaving the two alone to talk.

“Hm?” Jaemin asked, his gaze firmly on the floor.

“You’re looking much better…” Beomgyu commented.

“Ah, yeah.” Jaemin said, smiling slightly. “Ryu took me home that day on Monday. She took care of me so it didn’t take too long for me to get better. I wanted to go back to school on Wednesday, but she made me stay put, saying something like how I should take a break.”

“Glad you listened to her.” Beomgyu said, nodding. “You looked like you needed a break that day when we found you.”

Jaemin sighed heavily and nodded.

“I really did. Still do honestly… but I still wish she would’ve let me come.”

“And why is that? You really miss school that much?” Beomgyu asked, laughing.

Jaemin just smiled and glanced at him before looking away again.

“It’s not school I missed.” He muttered softly, the meaning clear in his voice.

The words were said quietly, but they hit Beomgyu hard anyways. He dropped his gaze, a soft sigh leaving him as guilt washed over him. 

What the heck were they doing?

But he knew they couldn’t turn back now.

“Beomgyu?” Jaemin asked, trying to catch the boy’s eye as they slowed to a stop near the edge of the rink. “What’s wrong?”

Beomgyu sighed once more and lifted his gaze, smiling softly and shaking his head.

“Nothing.” He said softly. “I missed you too.”

It was a sad smile and Beomgyu couldn’t be sure but it looked as if Jaemin definitely noticed.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Beomgyu sat staring at the pizza on his plate as if it were the most confusing thing he’d ever come across. He knew he should probably eat or at least start acting normal before someone noticed and asked questions.

As it was, most people just left him alone with the others, all five of them lost in their own worlds.

Jaemin and Ryujin had gone to get their own food and Beomgyu couldn’t help but notice how strange the two were acting as well. They basically stuck together everywhere they went, not hanging out with the five of them nearly as much as he had expected.

It was as if their relationship with the two was going backwards, from friends to acquaintances. 

He caught them discussing something seriously a few times but the conversations never lasted long enough for him to make anything out.

Their emotions didn’t give anything away either. Both were serious and grim but he couldn’t figure out why.

Did it have to do with whatever was after them? Or something else? Beomgyu couldn’t be sure.

“So…” 

Beomgyu glanced up at the sound of Taehyun’s resigned voice. All the boys looked at him expectantly when he didn’t speak immediately.

The boy was staring off into the distance and Beomgyu turned to see Jaemin and Ryujin still standing by the food, deep in discussion.

“Looks like we’re not the only ones that are worrying.” Taehyun commented.

“They are acting strange…” Yeonjun muttered. “But why? This can’t have something to do with whatever is after us right? He would… at least tell us that, wouldn’t he?”

“Well, he didn’t tell Beomgyu Hyung that a dark spirit tried to possess him.” Kai pointed out.

“Besides that…” Soobin sighed. 

It was clear that there was no point talking about Jaemin and his secrets. Jaemin wouldn’t say a thing and there was nothing they could do about that.

“We’ve caught onto them at this point.” Soobin stated. “Do you think they’ve caught onto us?”

“I hope not.” Beomgyu muttered. “He’s gonna try to justify himself again and we don't need that right now.”

“Also did you guys notice how he keeps glancing at our bracelets?” Kai asked.

“Yes…” Yeonjun sighed, rolling his eyes in frustration. “Makes me wanna tear it off even more.”

“Well, after today we won’t have to worry about it.” Taehyun reminded them.

Before long, Jaemin and Ryujin ended their discussion and came to join the others.

In an instant, their conversation ended and tense expressions disappeared. 

They talked about completely useless things, staying away from any magical topics.

But again, every time they asked Jaemin anything, it was very obvious that he was hiding something. And not only him, Ryujin too.

“What did you do at home?”

“Ah, nothing really…”

“How are you feeling now?”

“Better, I guess…”

“What about you, Ryujin? How’re things going for you?”

“Just ok, I guess…”

It was beginning to get on everyone’s nerves, as Beomgyu knew it would. Even a stranger who walked past would be able to tell how tense the mood was.

As if things couldn’t get worse, someone came rushing over to their table right at that instant.

“Beomgyu!”

Beomgyu flinched at his mother’s loud voice and turned to see her rushing over to them, a sort of barely repressed panic on her face.

Beomgyu immediately stood, a frown on his face as his mother slowed to a stop.

“Mom, what is it?”

“Your-”

Beomgyu made the mistake of glancing behind his mother’s shoulder and immediately backed away, eyes widening slightly.

He barely saw the man for more than a few minutes everyday but there he stood, not even masking the fiery anger in his eyes.

It was his father.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Soobin didn’t even need to think about who that man could be.

Beomgyu’s reaction gave it all away.

This was the man who continuously blamed his son for his mother’s death. This was the man who emotionally scarred his only child, completely failing in his role as a father.

There was an infuriating smile on his face as Beomgyu’s stepmother turned and glared.

“I tried to get him to leave. I don’t even know how he found out.” She muttered to Beomgyu.

“You’re not very good at keeping secrets.” His father said, grinning.

A tense silence fell over the whole area, most people ignoring their food and staring in confusion at what was unfolding before them.

Beomgyu’s expression was unreadable and that only made Soobin more anxious.

Should he interfere? He could probably charm the man easily and get him to leave.

But he didn’t want to do something like that in front of Jaemin.

If things got dire, he would jump in but not right now.

As it was, everyone’s eyes were glued to the scene.

“So…” The man said, taking a step closer. “Why was it that I wasn’t informed about my only child’s birthday party?”

Beomgyu laughed slightly at that, though there was no humor in the laugh at all.

“I’m quite shocked you even remembered my birthday…”

“Of course I would, Beomgyu. Why wouldn’t I?” His dad asked, a malicious glare in his eyes.

It was clear what the man was referring to. He remembered his son’s birthday not because of the obvious but because of his wife’s death which he blamed Beomgyu for.

“Nice party, by the way...” He continued when Beomgyu fell silent. “Regardless of whether or not I remembered… I wasn’t invited.”

“Yeah, you weren’t.” Beomgyu replied, dryly.

“And why is that?”

“I just didn’t feel like inviting you.” Beomgyu said, shrugging nonchalantly.

His dad’s villain-like smirk only grew and he opened his mouth to reply but before he could, Jaemin suddenly stood up.

Soobin turned to look at him in shock. There was pure anger in his eyes and he did nothing to mask it as he glared at the man before them. Even Beomgyu’s dad seemed shocked at the sudden movement.

“You don’t deserve to be here, that’s why you weren’t invited.”

Everyone shared shocked looks with one another, unable to believe what Jaemin had just said.

The words only fueled the man’s anger as he took a step closer to the boys.

“And you do?” he asked threateningly. “All of you? What are you, his friends? What have they done for you that I haven’t?”

When no one responded, the man growled in frustration, coming ever closer.

“We’ve done a lot more for him than you could ever dream of doing!” Jaemin challenged.

“He’s right.” Beomgyu said firmly, glaring at his father. “Everyone in this room has done more for me than you ever have.”

“Can they even compare to what I’ve done?!” His dad roared. “The years I’ve had to put up with you?! The-”

“You’re the one everyone has to put up with!” Beomgyu protested.

“How dare you…  _ How dare you?!” _

Just when Soobin was about to step in, one of the workers rushed up to the man, taking hold of his arm and telling him that he had to leave.

“Sir, you are creating a scene and we are going to have to ask you to leave.”

“Get off of me!” His dad yelled, throwing the worker off of him.

The worker glared in annoyance and was about to come back to drag him away but Beomgyu suddenly smiled and raised a hand.

“Don't worry about it. I got this.” He told the worker.

The worker seemed confused but simply nodded and backed off.

“You?” His father chuckled. “What are you going to do?”

“You.” Beomgyu said, turning his gaze back to his father. “Shut up.”

“Oooh I’m scared now.” His dad said, grinning.

Beomgyu only smiled back and slowly lifted his wrist, throwing off his bracelet.

“As you should be…”

Soobin had expected it but a shocked gasp still left him as the boy stepped closer to his father.

Beomgyu had gotten way better at controlling people’s emotions so he didn’t even have to touch them. He only had to maintain eye contact with them.

A shiver ran down Soobin’s spine as if he was the one being manipulated when Beomgyu finally lifted his fiery gaze to his father’s.

“Do you know how much I hate you?” Beomgyu asked in a low voice.

His father didn’t respond for a second, the confidence clearly dying in his eyes as his son stared him down.

“It can’t be much more than I hate you.”

Beomgyu smiled, his gaze becoming more intense by the second.

“Glad we’re on the same page. Why did you come here then, dad?”

The man seemed unsure at this point and didn’t answer. He took the smallest step back. Even from where he sat, Soobin could tell this man was not so easily shaken by fear, but that only made it more shocking that Beomgyu was slowly managing to scare him.

“I suppose you felt wronged…” Beomgyu continued. “How could your only child take everything from you and not even think to invite you to his party? Your son… he’s done so much to you hasn’t he?”

The man’s frown returned but it wasn’t nearly as angry as the first time. Soobin allowed himself a small smile at the obvious traces of fear and uncertainty in the man’s eyes.

“Did you ever think about how mom would feel if she knew how you treated me? Would she agree with you?” Beomgyu asked. “Have you ever thought about how your actions affected so many people, not just me?”

Beomgyu finally walked up to the man and put his hand on his shoulder.

“Looks like you don’t have an answer to any of my questions.” He muttered in a low voice. “I never want to see you again unless you have an answer to these. I swear if I see you before then, I will not hesitate to kill you.”

Although Soobin understood the words, it still shook him to his core when Beomgyu threatened the man like that.

The man frowned in annoyance and brushed his son’s hand away. He stepped back quickly, glaring at everyone as he did so.

“This isn’t over…” He muttered.

And with that, the man ran out the door.

For a few seconds, no one spoke and then it was as if the heavy cloud hovering over them had moved, making everyone sigh in relief.

Soobin finally stood and walked over to Beomgyu who was still standing where his father left him.

He was staring off into space, his expression blank as he took a step back.

“Beomgyu?” Soobin called softly. “Are you ok?”

Beomgyu shook his head slowly, lifting a shaking hand and pressing it against his head.

“My head hurts…” He muttered.

Before Soobin could say anything else, Beomgyu suddenly stumbled backwards, nearly crashing to the floor before Soobin caught him.

“Yikes, here, sit down…” Soobin said, gently lowering him to the ground.

Beomgyu groaned in frustration and shook his head sharply as if trying to ward off dizziness. The others began crowding around him, concern in their gazes.

Beomgyu suddenly looked very tired and subdued as he dropped his gaze, staring at his hands.

“I finally stood up to him…” He muttered.

But there was no joy in his voice.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Um, Beomgyu….”

Beomgyu flinched when he heard his Hyung call to him. His grip on the water bottle Yeonjun had gotten him tightened severely.

“Beomgyu, you’re going to break it.” Taehyun sighed as he came forward to take it out of his hands.

Beomgyu didn’t resist and dropped his gaze once more, staring down at the floor.

The five of them had decided to leave the rink and sit outside on the sidewalk for the time being and despite the cool breeze brushing against him, Beomgyu still felt much too warm.

He couldn’t be certain, but he was pretty sure this might be a result of overusing his power.

Of course, his father was no easy person to scare. Beomgyu had put all his strength into manipulating the man’s emotions and even then he was only the slightest bit disturbed.

Immediately after his father had left, Beomgyu began to feel dizzy and disoriented. A moment later, he was hit with a wave of exhaustion and the boys quickly decided to take the boy away before anyone could get more confused and begin asking questions.

“Beomgyu.” Yeonjun repeated, making the boy flinch again.

“What?” He asked, still not lifting his eyes. 

“Have you been listening?”

Beomgyu sighed heavily and shook his head.

“I’m sorry…” 

“No need to apologize.” Yeonjun said, his voice tired.

He put his arm around Beomgyu and pulled him close.

The others moved closer to him as well and for a while no one said a word. They just sat in the tense silence wondering what they were going to do now.

None of them were wearing their bracelets anymore. There was no point. They were stowed away somewhere in Soobin’s mom’s car now, a past burden that they could finally ignore.

After a few more seconds of silence, Soobin finally sighed and voiced the question they were all thinking about.

“What now?”

“Now nothing…” Beomgyu muttered, shrugging. “No one really knows what happened except us and…”

He paused and sighed, falling silent for a few seconds.

“With any luck, I’ll never see my dad again. Jaemin will probably confront us about this soon.” He stated. “When that happens, we just say what we need to and… and then we’re done.”

As if spurred by their conversation, the boys suddenly heard loud voices arguing just inside the rink.

Beomgyu turned his head just in time to see Jaemin and Ryujin walk out of the building, taking their argument outside.

Jaemin looked absolutely furious for some reason, while Ryujin just looked annoyed and resigned.

“Why don’t you just leave them alone, Jae?!” Ryujin yelled.

“These are Namjoon’s orders if you don’t remember! And besides that I promised Lisa and the others and basically  _ everyone _ back at the island that I would-”

“Well, can’t you see that you’re only making things worse?!”

The argument abruptly came to a stop as Jaemin turned and caught sight of the boys sitting there, staring at them with blank gazes.

Beomgyu, for one, wasn’t confused or even annoyed at this point. He guessed that sort of skill only came with being friends with someone as secretive as Jaemin.

Well, not for much longer anymore.

The two stood silently for a few seconds, before Jaemin suddenly walked forward, stopping right in front of the boys, arms crossed.

Ryujin shot him an annoyed look but stayed put a little distance away from the boys.

No one missed the way Jaemin’s eyes narrowed when he saw that they weren’t wearing their bracelets anymore, but they waited for him to speak first.

Finally Jaemin sighed heavily and brought his eyes back to stare at them angrily.

“What happened?” He demanded, the question clearly directed at Beomgyu.

Beomgyu just shrugged, not meeting his eyes.

“You know what happened. You were there.” He said dryly.

“I want you to  _ explain _ .” Jaemin said, irritated.

“Explain what?” Beomgyu asked. “It was pretty straightforward. My dad came uninvited and I told him to back off.”

“And how exactly did you do that?”

“I threatened him.”

Surprisingly, all it took for Jaemin to snap was a few dry answers and he finally crouched down in front of him, forcing Beomgyu to look him in the eye.

He glanced at each and every one of them, fire in his eyes, but none of them were phased. None of them spoke either, trusting that Beomgyu had this under control.

“Seriously, what the heck are you guys doing?” Jaemin demanded. “Why did you ditch your bracelets? Why are you doing this?!”

“So many questions…” Beomgyu sighed, speaking as if he didn’t have time to answer everything. “Well, let me ask you something, Jaemin. Why are the bracelets so important? Can you tell us that?”

As expected, Jaemin stood back up, lips sealed as he refused to tell them anything once more.

Beomgyu sighed, standing as well, prompting the others to follow suit.

He leveled his gaze with Jaemin’s, briefly registering Ryujin’s worried eyes on the scene.

“Sorry Jaemin… But we aren’t going to take your words seriously if you can’t tell us anything.” Beomgyu said, his tone firm but tired.

“Guys, please…” Jaemin said, his expression changing in an instant.

The anger vanished in a second, replaced with desperation.

“Please don't do this. I wish I could say something… You guys are going to regret this. Please listen to me.”

But Beomgyu just shook his head in resignation.

“We won’t regret a thing, Jaemin. We don’t care what you say, you’re not going to make us change our minds about this.” His words were harsh, but his voice remained laced with exhaustion. “If you keep bothering us about this, we won’t hesitate to use our powers to make you back off as well.”

At this, a spark of anger returned to Jaemin’s eyes.

“Oh yeah, you mean the powers I taught you how to use?”

Just as the question left his mouth, a look of realization dawned on him. Beomgyu didn’t need to ask to know what he had just realized.

“This… has been your plan all along, hasn’t it?” He asked, eyes sweeping over the five boys. “You guys have been using me this whole time, haven’t you? You were waiting for me to teach you before ditching the bracelets and ending this whole thing…”

“We’re ending this whole thing because you won’t tell us anything. I’ll admit that we led you on for a few days after coming to our decision but that was only because we knew you wouldn’t teach us if we ditched our bracelets right away. Besides that, from what we know the bracelets are dangerous and since you won’t tell us why they’re apparently not, we just went with what we feel is right. And besides  _ that _ , we can’t trust a word out of your mouth because of how much you’ve lied to us. You denied the existence of everyone Soobin Hyung has come across in his dreams, only to slip up around us and let us know that you actually do know those people.”

“I swear I don’t-”

“Oh yeah? Weren’t you just yelling about Namjoon’s orders and Lisa’s promises? And everyone back at the island that supposedly didn’t exist before?” Beomgyu challenged.

Once again, Jaemin was at a loss for words, not even trying to come up with an excuse this time.

“Guys, please, I know it may seem like I’m super shady but I’m on your side, I swear. I just… really, really, really can’t say anything.”

Beomgyu sighed and shook his head.

“Well then… We can’t be around you.”

And with that, Beomgyu turned and walked away.

The other boys wordlessly followed him as he led the way to his house. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> damn, i cant believe its been a yr since i started posting fanfic! thx to everyone who has stuck w me thru this yr and hopefully we can continue to do so! this is my first ever fic that i posted and hopefully we can finish it soon! again thx so much to everyone who reads and comments and leaves kudos! i rly appreciate all of u! <3
> 
> Y'all can fangirl with me at...  
> Tumblr:@minisuga127  
> Twitter:@MiniSuga127
> 
> Comments motivate me!💜 thx for reading!


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